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9/6/2010 |
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MCKENNEDY WINS
"THUNDER ON THE SOUND" AT WATERFORD SPEEDBOWL
Jon McKennedy Now
Leads Modified Racing Series Points
by
Denise DuPont |
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 Waterford
Speedbowl hosted the second annual “Thunder on the Sound” event on Saturday,
September 4th. Again this year the event was not to be outdone by other
Labor Day Weekend happenings. The evening’s events started as an Army
National Guard Blackhawk helicopter flew over the track and landed in the
center of the infield to kick off pre race ceremonies. 2010 Miss
Connecticut, Brittany Decker, sang the National Anthem. And then racing
commenced as Republican contender for US Congress, Janet Peckinpaugh, threw
the green flag for the evening’s first event a 25 lap SK Mod feature race.
Also not to be outdone at this race was 2009 MRS defending champion, Jon
McKennedy. His team unveiled a new RaceWorks chassis prepared just for the
race. The crew rolled the car off their trailer and handed the reins over to
McKennedy to do what he does best, race. He took the new car from there and
went forward to win his heat race and then on to win the 100 lap MRS feature
event.
 Since
a win at Lee USA Speedway earlier this year, McKennedy and his team have
struggled with a car that just missed the mark at every race. The team would
prepare the car for racing and head to the track to reap the fruit of their
hard work. At the end of each race the team felt discouraged because even
though they had given it there all and the car just did not perform. “The
last few weeks it has been a real big struggle. I just want to thank the
crew, all the guys. They always work hard but especially this week. They
worked fifteen to sixteen hours every day to get the car done. As of Monday
we had no car so they basically built the whole car in four and half days.
They worked hard and I am just glad got a win for them.”
This week though, the team’s hard work was rewarded with a win that finally
was a turn around for the team for their efforts. “To come here with a brand
new car right off the trailer it ran pretty good. I just have to thank the
guys. They worked really hard. It has been a long week with a lot of work. I
also have to thank Eddie Flemke and Reggie Ruggiero for getting the car done
for me with such a short notice. I hope everyone is happy that it paid off.”
 So
the #73 Power Mist team was able to leave Waterford Speedbowl on Saturday
night finally able to say that they have beat “The Bowl” and overcome their
rash of bad luck. “We have a win at a track that we usually struggle at,”
said McKennedy about his victory. “To come out of here with a win and a
brand new car and to get the points lead in both the owner and drivers, it
is a pretty good night.”
Just one spot from a win at his home track was second generation driver,
Chris Pasteryak. Pasteryak came back to his home track all smiles and ready
to drive. He strapped into the family owned #52 car of his dad and headed
out to prove that he was back full force ready to win. Luckily the end
results were not the same as the last time McKennedy won. Instead of a visit
to the emergency ward, Pasteryak was able to pilot his car into Victory Lane
to celebrate a second place finish. "I wish I could have made it a better
show but Jon had us covered tonight," Pasteryak said celebrating his second
place finish.
 Coming
in third, Steve Masse was one of the few drivers that was able to pass on
the outside groove at Waterford. He was able to make his charge forward from
a fourteenth starting spot passing cars when and where he could. After
struggling with the car all night, the team was happy with a third place
finish at the end. “The car was a little free all night,” Said Masse
reflecting on the race. “It was the same car that I had last time here but
it was not as racy as I thought it was. When I drove it hard it was real
loose on entry. We pitted I think about lap 25. We made a track bar
adjustment. We lowered it (the track bar) and it definitely helped but it
was not enough to get to get to the front as fast as I wanted to. But it was
definitely good enough for a top three. So we are happy.”
The team adjusted the car during early race cautions but they felt need
another one to get it where they needed to zero in their car in for a win.
“I was praying for a caution after I got by the #21 (Geoff Gernhard).
Because my car felt real racy on the bottom and I knew if we went double
file on a restart that I might be able to get Chris (Pasteryak) that was
running second. And I was hoping then that I maybe I could make a move on
Jon. Maybe I was thinking way too far ahead.”
 MRS
rookie contender Geoff Gernhard had his best run and finish of the 2010 race
season. He had the luck of the draw for the first heat race starting on the
pole. He continued his luck in the heat race finishing first. “Qualifying
today was great. I haven’t started, I believe, better than fifth in a heat
race. So pulling number one today was good. Everything went good today. We
haven’t had too many of these days. We are happy.”
Genhard’s heat race win was pivotal one in his career because it gave him
his first pole and an opportunity to start on the pole and drive for a win.
“We had an excellent run. We were getting way, way loose. I was just trying
to keep up with the leader and the rest of them. We just ended up fourth. I
wish that we had tightened up a little bit more we would have been able to
hang with them.”
As the race unfolded the rookie was right there in the thick of it as
veteran MRS drivers made their last charges for the win. Hard charger Dwight
Jarvis made a late race run to take the fourth spot from Gernhard and the
two made some contact. “With about five laps to go, Dwight got into the back
of me,” Said Gernhard. “I was hanging on for everything that it was worth. I
should be happy to make it this far this year to have the same color on each
panel. We have a little tin work to do this week. It is no big deal.”
 Dwight
Jarvis’s day did not start as he planned. He came to the track trying to
catch Jon McKennedy and a Waterford win for the series point lead. His car
was just not there for both practice and heat racing to help him with his
goal. “It was our fault that we did not finish well in the heat race. It was
not running good in practice. It was running tight so we kept moving the
tracking bar up and nothing. We added a turn and then a little bit more and
before the heat racing we went to far and then the car had no bite at all.”
Starting the race way back in nineteenth Jarvis knew that the night was
going to be a challenge. He hung back in the back of the pack as the race
unfolded waiting until half way to make his charge. Conserving the car and
feeling out the track groove paid off in the end. Jarvis was able to use the
outside groove to his advantage to pick off cars one at a time as he made
the charge to find McKennedy. “I would say that I held back at the beginning
and then my spotter told me it was lap fifty and we started to pour it on
then,” said Jarvis. “I like this track. It is fast. It is a nice place. This
is one of our better tracks. There is no place like it. “
The hard luck award once again goes to Les Hinckley. He went into the race
tied for the points lead. On lap 43 of the race, his night came to a fast
end when he and Ken Barry tangled as they both made a move to advance their
track position. The move was a costly one for Hinckley as he slips into
third in points. He is now third in points and thirty-eight points behind
leader, Jon McKennedy.
Teams will take time to celebrate Labor Day weekend while they plan for
their next race. On Friday, September 10th, the MRS teams will head to
Stafford Motor Speedway and what will be the longest race in the series
history as they compete on the half-mile oval for their 100 lap feature.
Racing Notes from Waterford Speedbowl:
For 2010 the decision was made to use a new tire
for the MRS series. The new tire has received both positive and negative
feedback.
Jon McKennedy
“The new tires seem to last a lot longer. I think that you can go a lot
harder for a lot longer distance. Last year you had to ride for the first
forty or fifty laps and save everything up for the end. With these tires you
can almost go hard the whole race. I rode around the first thirty laps and
then the last seventy laps I was basically hammered down. I was driving it
pretty hard and it (the car) stayed underneath me. The car started to get a
little bit free on me getting in so I put some front brake in it and that
kind of solved that.”
Steve Masse
“These tires are a little different than last years. They hold up and people
can beat on them. They really put a crutch in for people, cars that have
problems early on in the day. They put the new stickers on and they run
really good in the heat race. They are good enough but you cannot make or
complete a pass. I really think that it changes the way the features plays
out. I mean it is what it is.”
Geoff Gernhard
“I am new to the series so I do not really know a lot to compare the tires
to. I do not usually run with Hoosier. Where I come from at Thompson they
race American Racing tires. But I like the tire because I think it is a
little bit forgiving. If you mess up once or twice and beat them up you can
cool them off and keep going. I have no complaints with the tires. I think
that we are just starting to figure it out actually.”
Dwight Jarvis
“These tires last longer. I think that we were just as well off with the
other tires. This is one of Jack’s (Bateman) decisions to change the tires.
That was what he wanted and that was what we got.”
Next week MRS teams will head to Stafford Motor
Speedway. This will be the series first visit to the track and the second
large track they will race on this year. What are some of the competitors
thoughts as they prepare to head there?
Jon McKennedy
“Stafford – I am looking forward to it. I ran there quite a few times with a
modified and with the Super Modified. I had some decent success there. So I
have some laps there while a lot of guys in this series haven’t. Having been
there we have a little bit of an upper hand. Most of these guys do pretty
good so I am sure that they will adapt to it quickly. I just hope that it is
a good race. It is a great facility and I just hope that this series can
just put on a good show for everyone. “
Steve Masse
“I am very excited to be racing at Stafford Motor Speedway. I cannot wait
for it to be honest. I have never raced there. I have only gone to watch a
few times. But it looks like a fun track and I am just going to have to
learn from the veterans. I will just drive my car. Stafford being a bigger
track does not really bother me that much. I am really excited to be racing
on big tracks. They are all fun. If you car is not one-hundred percent you
really need to wheel the car. On some of the smaller tracks, like Seekonk or
Beech Ridge if you do not have a car you are not going anywhere. But it is
all fun for me.”
Geoff Gernhard
“I am use to the big tracks. Thompson is my home track. The short tracks are
what is killing me. It has taken me a little while to get use to them. I am
wicked excited about going to Stafford. I saw Stafford on the schedule and I
said “If I only make it to one race, it is going to be Stafford!” Because I
have always wanted to run there and I have never had the chance or
opportunity to. I hope that we make it into the race. I hear that there is a
ton of cars “
Dwight Jarvis
“I have never been to Stafford and I just hope that I can load it (the car)
in the trailer when we are done. I do not think that we belong there. This
series has gotten out of hand. We have to take too much time off of work and
we have to ask our crew too along with everybody involved. The series was
not designed for that. It was designed for guys that do not have much
financial backing could race. Now it is getting into too many races and
races that are far away. Hopefully we get it straightened out this winter.”
At Waterford Speedbowl the #73 team of Jon
McKennedy rolled a new car out of their hauler to compete. With less than a
handful of races left, why did the team make the decision to go with a new
car?
Jon McKennedy
“I just felt like we just needed to do it. The last four or five races we
were just really struggling. We had some top fives but I was just driving
the car for everything that it had and still barely making the top five. I
just felt to compete for the Championship and win races we needed to make a
change. We got a new chassis. The change it was night and day.”
Going out and running a 12 lap heat race to
determine where you are going to start the race puts a lot of pressure on
both the driver and the teams to have the best car they can before the
qualifying starts. Added to this pressure is the one chance to pull a
starting position for the heat race. As they say “Sometimes it is all in the
luck of the draw”. Here is some feedback on the process:
Steve Masse
“It was just like the race that we raced here a couple of weeks ago. We (the
MRS Mods) went from 40 to lap 100 with a green flag. Last time it was 20 to
100. It is just a racing deal.”
“It is weird how the racing has played out lately, especially the heat
races. I hate the heat races. We cannot pick a good number every week or
often enough to help us. It is real tough in these heat races starting fifth
or sixth. There is very minimum passing going on in every heat race this
whole year. It is always hard to get by two or three people especially here.
I blame the tires.”
“The way that I look at is there is not that much of a strategy involved any
more. People kind of just race a hundred percent all the time. Which is good
but it kind of makes you drive one-hundred percent which is tough. Tonight
it felt like there was no groove up top and it was really hard to make a
pass coming off the corner. People were really blocking and hugging the
bottom. Obviously people have done it and have come back all the way to the
front. So I cannot complain about it that much. I think I would like to see
maybe new rubber next year. Yes, a new type of tire next year.”
Geoff Gernhard made the decision to step up to
compete in the MRS. What are Gernhard’s thoughts after competing in fourteen
races at different tracks?
Geoff Gernhart
“It is a great little series. They run a tight ship and they do not take a
lot of stuff. The series competitors like racing. They do not like wrecking.
It took us a long time to save up and come to this series but we like it.” |
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Source: Denise DuPont / TheChromeHorn.com
Posted: September
6, 2010 |
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