Weather forecasters were optimistic that a pending rainstorm wouldn’t arrive before Sunday, but their predictions were off target as a rainshower hit East Bay Raceway Park Saturday afternoon. The rain and threat of showers delayed the program by two hours, but the wait was worth it for the fans and drivers in the five racing divisions.
Due to the delay, only two divisions ran heat races. In Street Stock racing, point leader Paul Gibbs won the first heat while Tim Spencer inherited the second heat after racelong leader Matthew Grissom broke at the white flag. For the 360 Sprints, Bruce Durden and Bryan Eckley were heat winners.
The Outlaw 4 class started the night’s features with a 15-lap presentation that saw 16 cars take the green. The race was short for defending class champion Chad Rose, who suffered front end damage on the first lap and fell out.
On the restart, Jim Murphy raced Kevin Haynes back to the flagstand for the first lap lead, Haynes faded and Murphy spun, collecting Brad Boerner. Going to the last completed lap, Haynes gained the top spot for the restart with Alex Boerner on his tail. Zach Amundsen slipped past Boerner and took the lead from Haynes on the third lap. Steve Miller was on a charge, picking up one spot per lap to snatch second by lap five. Miller went to the inside of Amundsen as they charged to complete the seventh lap with Miller now in the lead.
Alex Boerner regained second spot, but starting experiencing mechanical problems. Cecil Martin was able to slip past Travis Varnadore was coming into the top five. Alex Boerner’s car stalled with two laps left, setting up a shootout to the finish. No one had anything to offer Miller, who moved away for the win. Martin held second, ahead of Varnadore, point leader Pete Grantham, and Michael Gulvin.
The winged action began with the Limited Sprints offering a 12-car field. Polesitter Michael Smith, in his bid for back-to-back wins, jumped out to the early lead. The hard charger was clearly Greg Leonard who started the event in 10th, but had a top five spot by lap two. Leonard took third by lap four as Danny Jones hounded Smith. Jones slipped back, giving Leonard an opportunity to advance. As the field ran lap 8, Leonard swept by Smith on the outside in turn three to take the lead. Travis Bleimeister and Roger Crouse had the best action going as they sparred for fourth. Leonard stretched his margin on the field to score the victory by more a half track at the checkered. Smith held second, ahead of Jones, Bleimeister and Crouse. The 20-lap race was run without a caution and completed in under seven minutes.
Some anxious moments at the start of the Street Stock feature saw the 16 competitors struggle to get momentum. When the start held, Paul Gibbs made a masterful move to drive from third to first in a backstretch pass. Some of the top racers in the 2006 point standings were helping their cause as point runnerup Buck Woodhouse slipped past Tim Spencer to grab second. The duo exchanged the spot on several occasions as Charlie Paris Jr. was fighting an intermittent problem that saw his car fall out of the top five, then strengthen to regain a top spot. On a lap 11 restart, Woodhouse went to the high side to try a pass for the lead but spun to face the oncoming field. No one made contact, but it ended Woodhouse’s hopes. Buckshot Meixner was making the outside line work as he crept into the top five. Contact between third-running Daniel Lewis and fourth-running Cam Canova resulted in both at the back, moving Meixner to third. With two laps left, the field faced its final restart, but Gibbs powered of for the win, ahead of Spencer, Meixner, Gary Sheffield, and Matthew Collins.
The 25-lap main for the 360 Sprints presented Danny Curry with the initial lead. Several multi-car mishaps kept bunching the field after Curry had built up a formidable lead. Paul Sides had a fast race car but had to work to gain a top five spot. Bryan Eckley provided the first challenge to Curry, but Eckley had his hands full as Paulie Milum charged to third. Milum dispatched Eckley, then went after Curry. Contact on the backstretch saw Curry spin and Milum had the lead. Before the race could get restarted, Sides spun, resulting in a tail start for an additional push. Eckley benefited by regaining the second spot that he would not relinquish. Milum made it back-to-back wins in the class with Eckley, Daryl Smith, Tim Holston and Danny Jones rounding out the top five.
Lead swapping was the norm for the 4 Cylinder Bomber main. J.C. Hogjaws had it first, then Kyle Scott took over. Scott held it until B.W. Hogwaller moved from the middle of the pack to assert command. Hogwaller would not have any serious challenges, though point leader George Christensen and Jimmy Alvis took turns chasing the leader. Hogwaller came home a winner with Alvis second and Christensen third. Kever Raulerson ran a steady race for fourth with K.C. Laramee claiming fifth.
Late Models, Limited Late Models, Open Wheel Modifieds, Outlaw4s, and 4 Cylinder Bombers will headline Father’s Day weekend at East Bay Raceway Park. Complete information is available at www.eastbayracewaypark.com.
