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Open Wheel Division of Battle of the Bluegrass returns next Friday night Roger and Trish Eriksen Clinton County Speedway Next Friday night, August 13, The Open Wheel Division of the Battle of the Bluegrass will return to Clinton County Speedway. For those of you who attended the postponed event, bring your ticket stubs with you. For everyone else, plan on coming to the super track for another awesome night of racing. The Open Wheel cars will run a 40-lap feature race that will pay $1,500 to win. We expect to see last year¹s UMP National Champion, Ricky Arms, along with Leonard Pierce, who finished 2nd in total points at the super track last year. We also expect to see local outstanding drivers such as Clifton Dobbs and Bill Oates. Be there! Also, something new and exciting has been added to the program here at the super track. During intermission, there will be bicycle races for kids whose ages range from 4 through 14. These races will be broken down into brackets according to age so that competition will be as fair as possible. There will be trophies and prizes for the participants. Parents, please be patient with us. This will be our first time at this endeavor. We don¹t expect things to go as smoothly this first time as it will the 100th time. If you have any questions or comments, or if you wish to help out, please call Bobby and/or Anita Brake at 348-5202. So put the kids into the back seat and their bikes and trikes into the trunk and come on out for some fun, fun, fun. This is all happening at the Clinton County Speedway this coming Friday night, August l3. Friday night, August 6, was a super night for stockcar racing at Clinton County Speedway, Kentucky¹s super track. The weather was great! The temperature had dropped into the low seventies and the ³tailgate/picnic² area was filled with cars and pickup trucks, each guest taking advantage of Fan Appreciation Night. The track surface was ³tacky² wet and we were ready to put pedal to the metal. I had the honor of flipping the coin to determine whether we started ³straight up,² (fastest qualifier up front), or ³inverted,² (fastest qualifier at the rear), in the trophy dashes. As luck would have it, I called ³heads² and ³tails² it was. We started inverted. The Chevettes were the first down the hill and on the track for their Trophy Dash. Dewayne Garner, in car number 99, took an early lead in the race. It took fast qualifier Scott Shelton about two laps to work through the field of six cars and take the lead. When starter Tommy Landom waved the checkered flag, Scott Shelton was the winner, Tony Radford, in car number 29T, finished 2nd, and Doug Radford, in car 15E, finished 3rd. Dwight Chitwood, driving his number 203 car, accomplished what he has so often done before, he won the Open Wheel Trophy Dash. Clifton Dobbs, in his beautiful number 74 car, finished a very strong 2nd. Jeff Cotterman finished 3rd driving his number 28 car. Our thanks to Jeff for saying the invocation prior to the start of the races. Jeff, we do appreciate your prayers on our behalf. Tommy Hargis, driving his number 17 car, started the Road Hog Trophy Dash from inside in the 2nd row. It didn¹t take Tommy very long to work his way into the lead. At the checkered flag, Tommy was the winner. Tim Frost, in his number 28 car, finished 2nd, I was 3rd in the R&T93, and Joseph Patrick, in car 53, was 4th. Joseph Patrick continues to amaze me. Though there may have been others in history, the only driver I¹m aware of that had already established himself as an excellent racecar driver by the age of 12 is the well known driver of that multi-colored number 24 car, Jeff Gordon. Monticello¹s Bill Oates, driving his number 27 Open Wheel car, won the heat race. Bill started from inside the 2nd row to win the race. Gary Issacs, in his number 1 car, finished 2nd and Kenny Reams, in the number 31 car, finished 3rd. This week, I would like to introduce you to Dewayne Garner. Dewayne drives the number 99 Chevette at the super track. He and wife, Freda, live in Monticello. Dewayne is employed by the Monticello Independent School. He has been with the school for six years and is currently their maintenance supervisor. When Dewayne is not working at the school, chances are you will find him working on his racecar. Freda works for the Monticello Medical Center. The Garners have two children, 21-year-old, Donna Allen, and 17-year-old, Shawn. Donna is a junior in college. She plans to become a school teacher, one of our society¹s most noble professions. When in high school, Donna played on the basketball team and today she still enjoys playing both basketball and fast pitch softball. Shawn, too, enjoys playing basketball and he is very interested in motorcycle racing. When I discussed this interview with Trish, she stated, ³I had Shawn as a student when he was in 5th grade. He was extremely intelligent and a real joy to have in class.² That fans, is a direct quote. Trish went up into our loft and found her copy of the 1998 Waynetonian. In the back of the book, Shawn had written, ³I like you for a teacher and hope the brats next year get on your nerves like us. Your student, Shawn Garner.² In August of 2002, Dewayne was involved in a harrowing crash at the super track. Four cars were running abreast of each other with Dewayne on the outside. When the four cars entered the turn, another car behind Dewayne¹s bumped him and he hit the wall with considerable force. After hitting the wall, Dewayne¹s car rebounded back into oncoming traffic and Dewayne was hit broadside in the driver¹s door by another car. That is the last thing Dewayne remembers. He was airlifted to a hospital in Knoxville. Dewayne suffered a concussion and he had to have his knee put back in place. He was released the following day. Three weeks later, Dewayne won a heat race at the super track. He says that this was his most memorable victory. I asked Dewayne if he considered racing to be a ³hobby,² or a ³way of life.² Without hesitation, he responded, ³Racing is a ³way of life.² I asked him if there was any significance to the number 99 and he said, ³Yes, it is Jeff Burton¹s (NASCAR) number.² Regarding his future in racing, Dewayne says that decision may depend on how well his friend, Tim Frost, does in the Road Hog class. However, Dewayne says that he really likes racing in the Chevette class. Fans, when you come out to the races look for Dewayne¹s number 99 Chevette. Look for him to be either leading a race or up front challenging for the lead. His racecar is easy to see, it is the one whose number causes your eyeballs to ³wiggle.² This was the first time I had the pleasure of meeting Dewayne. I must admit that I was duly impressed with his intelligence and quick wit. Thanks, Dewayne! I thoroughly enjoyed our conversation. Early on in the Chevette Feature Race, Doug Radford¹s, number 15E car, was solidly hit in the left rear wheel. This spun Doug¹s car around 180 degrees and then he was hit again in the right rear wheel, this time by Janet Beck, in her number 01 front wheel drive car. The 15E car had to be assisted from the racetrack and the 01 car left the track with a steaming radiator. Janet and I have joked about the costs associated with racing, but a crash such as this is not a joke to those involved. These types of crashes are both expensive and labor intensive for the owner/driver. We can only hope that damage to all the cars involved was minimal. Scott Shelton won the feature race, Tony Radford finished 2nd, Jamie Burke, 3rd, Donald Gossage, in the number 04 car, finished 4th, and Dewayne Garner was 5th in the number 99 car. It was Dwight Chitwood all the way in the Open Wheel Feature Race. Dwight slowly pulled away from 2nd place finisher, Clifton Dobbs, and from 3rd place finisher Aaron Coffey. Bill Oates finished 4th and Kenny Reams, in the number 31 car, finished 5th. Once again, Tommy Hargis quickly established the lead in the Road Hog Feature Race and there was no catching him. I managed to stay a couple of car lengths behind for four or five laps, but then Tommy began to open the distance between us. At about the half way mark, Barton Williams, in his BP93, passed me for 2nd place. Jamie Taylor, in his number 23 car, finished 4th, Tim Frost was 5th, and (there¹s that name again), Joseph Patrick finished 6th. Remember fans, next Friday night, August 13, there will be a full program of racing at the super track which will include a 40 lap feature race for the Battle of the Bluegrass Open Wheel Division. Also, this will be the inaugural night for bicycle races for kids ages 4 through 14. Be there for a fun night at the super track. Till next Friday night, take care, and please ³click² your seatbelt. Add a comment |
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