by Jean Lynch Tampa, Fla. - (1/23/03) - Jimmy Owens, out of Newport, Tennessee, drove a smart race and collected $1,500 on opening night of the three-day 4th Annual Ramada Inn on Tampa Bay Open Wheel Modified event that also was the start of the 27th Annual East Bay Raceway Park Winternationals.
"The car was a little tight and I was just driving the track too hard. Finally, I let the track come to me," Owens explained to on-track announcer Whit Holley on Thursday night at the end of the 25 lap A-Main.
The day had started off at 63 degrees, but when the checkered flag waved over the winner, the temperature was only 37 degrees. That could have contributed to the tires not being able to grip the track, resulting in 11 yellow flags over the length of the race.
However, with Owens starting eighth, he was able to keep the race-long leader, Shane Cottle, in sight and wait until a return to green after the yellow on lap 18 to pressure Cottle and take his inside groove away in turn four and gradually pull away, winning by a 10- car length advantage. It seemed like the longer Owens ran his Performance chassis powered by a Hovis engine, the more it hooked up to the l/3-mile clay oval.
Mark Iverson drove a consistent third with Brady Short next in fourth. But, Jeff Leka was a man on the move, coming from 16th up to crack the top five. Rounding out the top ten it was Ryan Bowman, Brad Roloff, Danny Schwartz coming from 23rd to rank eighth, then Craig Christensen up from 21st to ninth and Dan Hamstra finishing tenth after starting on the pole, but tangling on lap five and restarting at the back of the 26-car field.
A field of 102 cars was on hand, although 144 had pre- entered, and the program included time trials where Mike Marlar set fast time of 17.545 not breaking the track record for Open Wheel Modifieds here at 17.021 set by Hamstra in 2001. Ten heats were lined up staggered and straight up with only the top two going to the A-Main and the heat winners redrawing for the feature line- up.
Heats went to Marlar, Hamstra, Owens, Ron Jones, Lee Hobbs, Cottle, Short, Iverson, Randie Sweeney and Randy Hall. The twin 15-lap B-Mains had Christensen winning the first one after starting 13th, while Schwartz and Joel Cyderman went to the back of the inside row of the A-Main.
In the first 12-lap C-Main, Dan Kiger came all the way from 17th to win and pole sitter Daryl Herbert held on for the final transfer spot to the back of the first B-Main. In the second C-Main, Joey Jensen started 13th and took the win over Jerry Archambault, who came from ninth.
