The 10 lap Little Lincoln Vintage Stock Car Club restart with John Stevenson, eventual winner Bill Brittingham
on front inside and Jamie Wagner at rear before he finished in 2nd
Fourteen year old Jimmy Wills drove to collect the 2008 Delaware State Dirt
Track Championship in the # 22W Modified Lite
Are You Having Racing Withdrawals Yet? Winners Of The Delaware State Dirt Championship
November 27, 2008
By Bonnie Nibblett
Delmar, DE…..Happy Thanksgiving to everyone! It’s the time to sit back and rest
or just get fat eating; which lays ahead for some the next couple of months.
Racing in NASCAR and the Delaware Motorsports Complex has ended until February &
March when the ¼ mile dragway action returns. I’m missing the track already,
craving those fumes, the sounds, the hustle in the pits, the dirt blowing in
your eyes (okay, I don’t miss that one), just the racing action puts a twinkle
in my eye. Ho Ho!
What a great job with another record being broken this year in NASCAR. Jimmy
Johnson won the 2008 Sprint Cup Championship and his third consecutive
championship in a row and he ties the record with Cal Yarborough. Also, hats off
to Clint Bowyer for winning the Nationwide Series Champ Title, and Johnny Benson
in the Craftsman Truck Series. Bowyer’s first visit to the Delaware
International Speedway (DIS) occurred back in May when the World of Outlaws Late
Model tour visited the track. Bowyer also has ties to Shannon Babb in the #18
late model in the WoOLMS. During his visit Bowyer told me that he didn’t even
realize our magnificent track existed and really liked it, plus we all know he
has love of playing in the clay.
A little DIRT rumor has it that DIS may have both the World of Outlaws and the
Late Model Sprint Series in 2009 return. It was announced during the Delaware
Dirt Track Championship weekend. I have not confirmed this news or dates but if
true, what a treat for race fans. Tied in with the NASCAR’s first weekend in
Dover for 2009, what a plentiful cluster of racing? Enough racing in the weekend
to feed that addiction for NEED FOR SPEED; thinking of this just itches
my withdrawal symptoms I’m already suffering from.
The speedway hosted the last event for this season with Delaware Dirt Track
Championship the weekend of Nov. 1-2, 2008. Some how the weather cooperated with
a beautiful weekend, not too cold like it has been lately or raining in the last
weeks. A lot of cars and even a little bit of side by side racing during the
daytime event to closed out the season.
Saturday’s action had the Little Lincoln Vintage Stock Car for the first feature
of the day. Bill Brittingham of Felton, DE took home the checkered flag in his
57’ Chevy. Matt Johnson took the green, but the full 10 laps had an abundant
array of cautions. Just as the field started, one would get around bringing out
the yellow over and over. In spite of that, the guys continued put on a
masterful race as usual.
2005 Little Lincoln Vintage Stock Car Rookie of the Year, Jamie Wagner started
4th. Before any laps were even in books, there was a big pile up in turns 1 & 2
gathering Tony Daisey, Steven Baker, and Wagner who suffered with a flat tire.
Wagner was back out on the track in the hunt in time to restart at the rear. On
the restart Brittingham made the move to take the helm and continued to lead. In
the end Wagner made his way back up the pack for a showdown between Brittingham
and Wagner all the way to the checkered. The top five were Brittingham, Wagner,
Matt Johnson, John Stevenson, and Baker winded up claiming 5th. They always put
on a great show.
The Small Block 50 lap feature had Craig VonDohren, Barton, PA, picking up the
big bucks this year. His team also had paid the gambler’s fee, so VonDohren
picked up $3500 for the victory, $1000 for the gambler’s monies and then $645 in
lap money for a total of $5145. VonDohren had been a past winner but that was
way back in 1998 & 1999. The remaining top five were Gary Hager, Mike Iles,
Keith Hoffman, and MeMe DeSantis. A total of 42 small blocks battled for the 30
positions available. Heats were won by Ryan Godown, VonDohren and Gary Hager and
consi’s to Bobby Watkins and Rick Holsten.
Also on Saturday, the heats for the remaining divisions were run for the
features that would run on Sunday.
Big Block mods had
at least 42 cars to try and get to run in the 30 positions for the 50 lap
feature. The heat winners were Wade Hendrickson,
Glen Reed, Duane Howard and Richie Pratt, Jr., consi’s won by Mike McAleer, and
Sam Wescott, Jr. Duane Howard would go on to win the feature with Hendrickson,
Pratt, Kenny Brightbill and H. J. Bunting (Bunting also finished second place in
the tracks season
championship) rounding out the top five. Howard picked up a cool $7330 total
monies.
Super Late Models had 33 cars showing up to qualify for the 50 lap feature,
heats winners were Roy Deese, Jr., Jamie Lathroum and David Pettyjohn, consi
winner Kyle Merkel. On Sunday, Lathroum had one of his best wins in his career.
Lathroum visits DIS on and off during the season, so this was his first win at
Delmar, and a nice pocket of cash to add; Lathroum with the purse, gambler’s fee
and lap monies took home total of $6025.
The AC Delco Modified crates class heat winners were Michael White, Tim Trimble
and John Curtis. White would claim the win for his first Delaware State Dirt
Track Championship. In fact, White had also won the track championship for the
season, so this was just the icing on the cake. Also smacking down over a $1500
purse was not too bad to add to the weekend. The remaining top five in the
feature were Trimble, Curtis, Herman Powell and Brad Trice.
The Crate Late Models division heats were won by Eric Vent and Herb Tunis. Vent
picked up the feature win as well and over $1500 duckies. The other top five
drivers were, Mike Wilson, Tunis, Clint Chalabala and Barry Beauchamp.
The last to qualify was the Modified Lite class. Most of the support classes
don’t get to runs heats during the season so they all love being able to do
that. The heat winners were Kevin McKinney and Jimmy Wills. Wills a rookie at
only fourteen years old would claim the 20 lap main. The top five were Wills,
Rick Wheatley, Nick Hendricks, Sparky White and Erik McKinney. Wills took home
over $1300 for a weekend of racing.
On Sunday, the last two events held were the Southern Delaware Vintage Club and
the Slide for Five. C. J. Schirmer won the vintage modified class and sportsman
class was won by James LaPlant. In the Slide for Five the winner was Randy Gray.
That wraps up the Delaware State Dirt Track Championships weekend held at the
Delaware International Speedway Nov. 1-2, 2008. A complete run down of drivers
and results you can check the tracks web at
www.delawareracing.com or visit
www.redbud69racing.com to see some
action pictures.
There might not be racing for a few weeks or months, but that does not mean you
can’t keep up with what is going on in Delaware. All your news and events can be
seen by visiting www.redbud69racing.com
Your Delaware and Surrounding Tracks Race News web site with the largest
racing message board on the shore. The message board is powered by Hab-Nab
Trucking of Seaford, DE and A1 Graphic & Lettering of Georgetown, DE. You can
view the board from the main web site. See you at the track!
Craig VonDohren # 1C leading in his heat in small block action
Jamie Lathroum # 6 took home the Delaware State Dirt Track Championship in the Super Late Model 50 lap feature