Roper nails down sprint win at Charlotte Motorsports Park
By Claude Lewis
R.C. Roper has been suffering from a variety of ailments of late, but the Fort Myers racing veteran definitely enjoyed his Easter holiday.
Roper got the holiday off to a roaring start by capturing the 25-lap USA Sprints feature Saturday night at Charlotte County Motorsports Park.
Roper, who drives the No. V8 winged sprint, thanked the Lord after taking the checkered and talked about enjoying a peaceful Easter Sunday.
Roper has been racing in Punta Gorda since the track was first up and running in the early '90s. He even acted as track promoter in the late '90s.
Placing a distant second in the sprint feature was Mike Tharp, while Greg Lenard took third.
Winged sprints will return to Charlotte Motorsports Park this coming Saturday night as the highly competitive Tampa Bay Area Racing Association visits the 3/8 -mile paved oval for the first time in many moons.
The four-cylinder open-wheeled Outlaw Modifieds ran a double feature -- one a makeup from a February rainout.
Robert Campbell won the first 30-lapper in the 10 car. Doug Hopper was second, points leader Cliff Steinman third and Mike Endee fourth. Robbie Bean had a shot to win, as he was running second before getting sent to the back.
The second 30-lapper was a non-points race. It was all Bean in the 28 car. Campbell was second and Hopper third. Steinman and Endee saw their runs end before the green flag even dropped, as the 2 car of Zack Rudd wrecked them while they were warming tires.
Three regular divisions also raced on a cool Saturday night in Punta Gorda.
Terry Price made it two straight wins in Road Warriors, as he led all the way in the 3 car. Shane Leonard was second in the 18. Cory Scott took third while Greg Anderson was fourth in a Ford.
In the Super Stock 25-lapper, Ryan Pancoast got out to a big early lead and later had enough to hold off the experience of Brian Richardson. It was the first career victory for Pancoast, who pilots the 47 car. Brian Richardson stayed ahead of older brother George for third.
The Junkyard Dogs ran A and B features.
The A race was for the more experienced and successful drivers. Randy Kile captured that race. Chris Lucas banged his way to second in the 00. His stepfather Shane Moore took third.
In the B race, Jeff Malmberg was the toast of the field in the 45 car. Jason Carter was second in the 83 and Dave Malmberg was third in the 47.
Charlotte County Race Results for 4-7-07
Outlaw Modified Race 1 1. 10 Robert Campbell ---- Heat Winner 2. 15 Doug Hopper 3. 23 Cliff Steinmann 4. 29 Mike Endee 5. 11 Billy Campdell 6. 83 Tom Giddings 7. 57 Myk Lauter 8. 04 Tom Meyer 9. 9 John Parrish 10. 22 Frank Hurst 11. 69 Ric Voisey 12. 52 Antonio Gonzalez 13. 28 Robbie Bean ---Heat winner 14. 2 Zack Rudd 15. 8 Matt Delaney 16. 77 John Gilbert III 17. 6 Frank Hurst
Outlaw Modified #2 race 1. 28 Robbie Bean 2. 15 Doug Hopper 3. 10 Robert Campbell 4. 83 Tom Giddings 5. 04 Tom Meyer 6. 22 Ric Mills 7. 52 Antonio Gonzales 8. 2 Zack Rudd 9. 8 Matt Delaney 10. 11 Billy Campbell 11. 9 John Parrish 12. 57 Myk Lauter 13. 69 Rick Voisey 14. 6 Frank Hurst 15. 23 Cliff Steinmann 16. 29 Mike Endee
Sprints 1. V8 R.C. Roper 2. J1 Mike Tharp---Heat Winner 3. 85 Greg Lenard 4. 1 Tim George 5. 3 Dennis Mizaraca 6. 67 Scotty Adema
Super Stock 1. 47 Ryan Pancoast 2. 56 Brian Richardson ---Heat Winner 3. 11 George Richardson 4. 4 Donald Justice 5. 18 Craig Amboyan 6. 19 Ryan Meiser 7. 66 Andy Whitted
Road Warriors 1. 3 Terry Price 2. 18 Shane Leonard 3. 48 Cory Scott 4. 19 Greg Anderson 5. 23 Jeff Rumbold ---Heat Winner 6. 46 Michael Collins 7. 34 Eddie Morrison 8. 09 Donnie Ollie jr. --Heat Winner 9. 5 Donnie Castillo 10. 33 Ann Marie Richardi DNS 11. 38 Dar Houghton DNS
JYD B Race 1. 45 Jeff Malmberg ---Heat Winner 2. 83 Jason Carter 3. 47 Dave Malmberg 4. 97 Josh Flesher 5. 73 6. 38 Kevin Anderson 7. 9 Travis Gossard 8. 46 David Malmberg 9. 55 Mark Davis 10. 41X Mike Graves 11. 6 Mike McCarson 12. 7 Dwayne Thibodeau
JYD A Race 1. 21 Randy Kile 2. 00 Chris Lucas 3. 24 Shane Moore 4. 83 5. 27 Scott Atkins 6. 33 Les Couch ---Heat Winner
