| THORNTON ZIPS TO FIRST WIN OF THE YEAR IN WILD CLASSICS ACTION AT OCALA | by Dave Westerman
 2001 CARS Champion Eddie Thornton took the measure of the field Saturday night as the Classic Auto Racing Series made its second visit of the year to Ocala Speedway.
The tone for the evening was set early as both George Hall, Jr. and Dan Hammerbeck had their cars trailered following engine problems during hot laps.
The first heat race didn't help matters as Patrick Sanders lost control of his '32 Ford coupe and crashed into Bud Spencer on the front straightaway as the field completed lap one. Both cars then backed hard into the frontstretch wall. Neither driver was hurt, but both machines suffered major damage and were done for the night.
Thornton went on to win the first heat and secured the fourth starting spot in the 15-lap feature while Mike Samples led green to checker in heat two to earn the pole position for the main event.
Fifteen of the nineteen Classics in the pits answered the call for the feature with outside polesitter Frank Conrad outrunning Samples into turn one with his Frank's Sandblasting/Shriner's Children's Hospital "Teal Tornado" sedan to assume the early lead.
The caution flew early as Ray Frazee spun in turn four on lap two. As the yellow was displayed, the leaders got jammed up in turn two with Samples being punted into the infield.
Samples got his second spot back, but his car never seemed right after the spin and he faded quickly on the restart as Thornton, point leader Jim Rahman, and Dennis Gilliam formed a tight pack behind Conrad.
After some crowd-pleasing side-by-side action, Conrad slid high going into turn one on lap six and was quickly freight-trained by the trio of Thornton, Rahman and Gilliam.
Keith Roberts, driving his popular Blackjack Mulligan/Main Street Auto/Nellie's Pub Chevy coupe, tried to find the inside line on Conrad as well, but the two made contact with Roberts' machine going up and over the front of Conrad's bringing out yellow flag number two.
Roberts was able to continue, but Conrad's car had to be towed from the racing surface.
Thornton now had the top spot in his Amsoil sponsored coupe, but Rahman was hooked up and putting on the pressure in his bid for three straight Series wins in his Romac Lumber/Westmont Homes '34 Chevy.
Rahman was working Thornton hard when the final caution flag was tossed on lap eleven as Mike Albert and Samples got together in turn three and spun. Up to that point, Albert had been making up for a poor start by passing several cars on the tough outside lane around Ocala Speedway. Both cars were sent to the rear of the field for the restart.
Thornton got a good jump on Rahman when the green reappeared and held on for his first win of the season after dominating the Series last year.
Thornton was joined in victory lane by his son Patrick and told the crowd his car was for sale so he can get the money to put a kart program together for him. "I've had my fun with the Classics, now it's time to have some fun with my kid." said Thornton.
Rahman continued his hot streak and added to his big point lead by finishing in the runner-up spot. Ed Yates, second in points going into the Ocala show, had borrowed a car from Thornton to race after blowing the engine in his regular car at New Smyrna. But a leaky water pipe flooded his home in Orlando Saturday morning and he was forced to miss the show, the first time Yates has missed a race in some time.
Gilliam came home third in the South 40 Motorsports/South 40 Graphix '34 Ford Sedan to earn the Door Operating Systems Rookie of the Race Award for the third time this season. In fact, Gilliam has run three races, finished third in all three and won the rookie honors in all three as well.
Al Hagan came back from a heat race problem and drove his Bryant Heating & Cooling '32 Ford coupe from eleventh on the starting grid to fourth at the finish in a display of great heads-up driving. E.T. McGhee debuted his new '32 Ford sedan with a solid fifth place finish. Albert drove back through the field and got sixth away from Harvey Ewing on the last lap. Ewing was seventh trailed by George Hall III, who had another great run in his Thermal Technologies sponsored coupe. Roberts came back from his earlier crash to finish ninth while Orange City's Greg Helton, making his first start in the Classics, rounded out the top ten.
Another new driver to the Series, Jim Dutton of Edgewater, was running a solid eighth but had a tire go down during the final caution period and lost a lap in the pits.
The Classic Auto Racing Series now heads to Sugarland Motorsports Park in Clewiston next Saturday for the first dirt track race of the year. It's the first visit to the racetrack for the CARS drivers since 1997.
FINISH: OCALA SPEEDWAY - 5/11/02:
1) Eddie Thornton, Orlando #4
2) Jim Rahman, Clermont #5
3) Dennis Gilliam (R), Mims #42
4) Al Hagan, Merritt Island #6
5) E.T. McGhee, Deland #1
6) Mike Albert, Winter Springs #24
7) Harvey Ewing (R), Brooksville #17
8) George Hall III, St. Petersburg #9
9) Keith Roberts (R), Groveland #31
10) Greg Helton (R), Orange City #3
11) Mike Samples (R), Orlando #81
12) David Nunes, Orlando #90
13) Jim Dutton (R), Edgewater #2
14) Frank Conrad, Ft. Pierce #11 - DNF/crash
15) Ray Frazee (R), Oak Hill #43 - DNF/power steering belt
16) Bud Spencer, Palm Harbor #7 - DNS/crash in heat
17) Patrick Sanders (R), Winter Garden - DNS/crash in heat
18) George Hall, Jr., St. Petersburg #32 - DNS/broken valve
19) Dan Hammerbeck, Clermont #2X - DNS/engine
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