Chris Raabe - Rick Young Photo
Cornwall, ONT — July 5, 2009 – By Tom Skibinski, DIRTcar Racing Northeast PR Director
Around this same time last year Chris Raabe was celebrating his first career feature race victory in the Mr. DIRTcar Sportsman Championship Series. Three months later he was officially crowned Mr. DIRTcar Champion at the age of 17.
Only four shows have reached the record book this season, and now Raabe, a seasoned veteran of the weekly open-wheel wars, has already captured his second checkered flag on tour and his latest triumph Sunday in the Benson Auto Parts 50 at Cornwall elevated him back into familiar territory — first-place in the latest Mr. DIRTcar point standings.
The ‘Teenage Tornado’ settled into the top-three by the halfway mark, moved in to shadow leader Guy Ouellette with 30 laps scored, then dove under the fast Frenchman to forge the only lead change with 13 laps still remaining. A late race scare in traffic nearly thwarted Raabe’s best effort, yet the talented traveler from Napanee, Ontario held on for a three car-length margin over hard-charging Brandon Sweet in the tour’s first trip to Cornwall since 1996.
“Hats off to everyone here (on the team), they’re the real winners. I just get in the car and drive it, not a whole lot to it,” downplayed Raabe, the modest teenager who is now staring history right in the eye with a second-straight Mr. DIRTcar title clearly in sight. “The guys worked really hard on the car, we were a little bit off at the start but got better as the night went on.”
Qualifying fifth fastest in time trials to help sort out the 30-car field, Raabe finished second in his heat behind Sweet before drawing sixth to start outside row three and right alongside Sweet in the 50-lap finale.
Ouellette grabbed the pole in his own pre-race pick and shot out early before the first yellow waved just as the opening circuit ended. When the dust finally cleared, Canadian chauffeur Sheldon Hoogwerf and Central New Yorker Eric Giguere were among the casualties although each were able to rejoin the rear without losing a lap.
Ouellette jumped out front back under green flag conditions and was chased by Western New York invader Jipp Ortiz, fresh off his win the night before stateside at Can-Am Motorsports Park in LaFargeville. Raabe stormed into third with a handful of laps complete, although he traded spots with fourth-place runner Shane Pecore to leave him just ahead of Sweet while fast time trailer Sammy Reakes IV crept up to challenge in the early stages.
Quebecois driver Steve Bernier had slowed in turn four to force a second caution period on lap seven, and it wasn’t until fellow Canadian Todd Ferguson looped his mount exiting turn three that yellow lights would fall again on lap 21.
The top-five positions remained intact at the halfway mark forcing the nearest challengers to zero in on the #07 of Ouellette, #0 of Oritz and #01 of Raabe as the tight quarter-miler blackened with each passing lap. Raabe finally overtook Ortiz for second on lap 28, yet three yellows in three laps only delayed his rise to the front as Ouellette made his car as wide as can be knowing a change was about to come.
Pulling up to the leader’s bumper seemingly lap after lap, Raabe finally made it alongside Ouellette on the back chute, then pulled off a perfect slide for life exiting turn four before emerging as the new front-runner with three miles of racing still to go. Knowing Raabe had found the hot set-up with laps clicking off at a 15-second clip, Sweet followed suit and bullied his way into second with eight laps left and 23 cars riding around to contend with.
Raabe suddenly drew a gasp from the capacity crowd as he made contact with American Mark Chiddy on the front straightway attempting to put him a lap down just as the white flag was in the air. Raabe slowed his Scott Industrial Services no. 01 Kingston RV Centre-Tyroute Communications/TEO machine sideways for a brief moment, regrouping just in time to shut the door on a fast-closing Sweet en route to his sixth DIRTcar win of the season.
“I was off that (front) wall more times than I could count, we’re gonna have to start putting on a heavier right side bar, that’s for sure,” smiled Raabe, who retook the series points from sixth-place finisher Reakes by a count of 307-301 through the initial four tour events.
“The track was a little choppy at the start of the night, but everyone here working on it did a great job getting it back into shape. It was real racy, certainly had lots of bite through the middle and was just a good track tonight,” noted Raabe, whose first series win this year came at Can-Am in April, with Black Rock (9th) and Brewerton (21st) his only other finishes in tour competition.
While Raabe visited victory lane at Cornwall last season, Sweet was just as excited with his runner-up tally as it highlighted his first-ever trip to Ron Morin’s plush facility as well as his initial top-five feature race run on tour this year.
“Its definitely awesome to come out here for the first time and run this good,” remarked Sweet, who finished 18th in the final overall 2008 Mr. DIRTcar title hunt. “But first off, I want to congratulate Chris, he’s a good runner and we’ve been running with him since go-karts.”
“I’d also like to thank all my sponsors, its been a great year so far, hopefully we can keep it going,” added Sweet, who has registered four feature wins in ’09 aboard the no. 24 Clarence Henry Coach-Powis Excavating/Bicknell entry, split evenly between Can-Am and Thunder Alley Speedpark at two apiece.
On this day a member of the touring trio comprised of top Frenchmen representing autodromes Granby and Drummond, Ouellette was in line for his first win of the season until Raabe forced the St-Hyacinthe, Quebec driver out of his groove before crossing the line in the show position. A climb up the victory lane podium was met by track PR master Brian Mulligan, who served as translator for Ouellette in his first-ever post-race appearance trackside.
“This is my first time to Cornwall and I really enjoyed the experience,” opened Ouellette after keeping his R Tuning-J.Anctil Rona/TEO mount at the head of the class all night until developing a push as the laps dwindled. “I’d like to thank all the spectators for coming out to support this event. It was a real pleasure to run with guys the caliber of Chris and Brandon, hopefully I’ll get to do it again sometime very soon.”
The Mr. DIRTcar Sportsman Series takes nearly a two-week break before getting the green light for round number five at Cayuga County Fair Speedway on Saturday, July 18 as part of DIRTcar All-Star Weekend, July 17-19.
Mr. DIRTcar Sportsman Championship Series Race #4 – Cornwall Motor Speedway, July 5, 2009 ‘Benson Auto Parts 50’ Event Summary
FIN STR CAR# DRIVER
1 6 01 Chris Raabe/Napanee,ONT
2 5 24 Brandon Sweet/Watertown,NY
3 1 07 Guy Ouellette/Valcour,QUE
4 2 0 Jipp Ortiz/Ransomville,NY
5 3 15 Shane Pecore/Cornwall,ONT
6 12 17k Sammy Reakes IV/Palermo,NY
7 15 99p Greg Panunte/Port Colborne,ONT
8 7 k38 Ryan Susice/Ransomville,NY
9 11 5 Dave Wilgosh/Lyn,ONT
10 16 92 Adam Turner/Picton,ONT
11 17 66 Dan Wiesner/Geneva,NY
12 29 25 Steve Bernier/St-Hyacinthe,QUE
13 14 38 Luke Whitteker/Iroquois,ONT
14 21 94 Steve Nadeau/St-Robert,QUE
15 10 77jr. BJ Willard/St.Catharines,ONT
16 4 67g Eric Giguere/Waterloo,NY
17 13 95 Tammy Jalbert/Cornwall,ONT
18 20 10 Steve Savoie/D’Acton Vale,QUE
19 8 27 Sheldon Hoogwerf/Prescott,ONT
20 18 44 Todd Ferguson/Prescott,ONT
21 24 54 Mark Chiddy/Boston,NY
22 9 8a Dana Aikins/Wellesley Island,NY
23 23 19w Justin Wright/Piffard,NY
24 28 63 Chris Herbison/Brockville,ONT
25 27 86 Adam Trickey/Mallorytown,ONT
26 26 *74 Matt Billings/Brockville,ONT
27 19 66x Tabatha Murphy/Prescott,ONT
28 25 80eh Ryan Buzzell/Renfrew,ONT
DNS 22 20 Randy Earl/Brockville,ONT
DNS 30 11x Brian Copp/North Gower,ONT
*Billings started at rear of field in no. 20 car of Earl.
LAP LEADERS: Ouellette (1-36), Raabe (37-50).
CAUTIONS: 6 (lap 2, lap 7, lap 21, lap 32, lap 33, lap 33).
HEAT WINNERS: Hoogwerf, Sweet, Ortiz, Ouellette.
SYRACUSE TOWN MECHANICAL 30 QUALIFIER: Brandon Sweet.
XTREME LUBRICANTS FAST TIME AWARD: Sammy Reakes IV (14.410sec/62.457mph).
CARS ENTERED: 30.
NEXT EVENT: Cayuga County Fair Speedway – July 18, 2009.
QUALIFYING
FAST AVE
TIME MPH CAR# DRIVER
1 14.410 62.457 17k Sammy Reakes IV/Palermo,NY
Xtreme Lubricants Fast Qualifier Award
2 14.710 61.183 77jr. BJ Willard/St.Catharines,ONT
3 14.752 61.009 95 Tammy Jalbert/Cornwall,ONT
4 14.779 60.897 25 Steve Bernier/St-Hyacinthe,QUE
5 14.806 60.786 01 Chris Raabe/Napanee,ONT
6 14.815 60.749 74 Matt Billings/Brockville,ONT
7 14.820 60.729 66 Dan Wiesner/Geneva,NY
8 14.872 60.516 94 Steve Nadeau/St-Robert,QUE
9 14.878 60.492 07 Guy Ouellette/Valcour,QUE
10 14.889 60.447 24 Brandon Sweet/Watertown,NY
11 14.894 60.427 15 Shane Pecore/Cornwall,ONT
12 14.896 60.419 0 Jipp Ortiz/Ransomville,NY
14.896 60.419 27 Sheldon Hoogwerf/Prescott,ONT
14 14.899 60.407 66x Tabatha Murphy/Prescott,ONT
15 14.911 60.358 92 Adam Turner/Picton,ONT
16 14.920 60.322 19w Justin Wright/Piffard,NY
17 14.960 60.160 67g Eric Giguere/Waterloo,NY
18 14.973 60.108 10 Steve Savoie/D’Acton Vale,QUE
19 15.018 59.928 k38 Ryan Susice/Ransomville,NY
20 15.021 59.916 99p Greg Panunte/Port Colborne,ONT
21 15.045 59.821 63 Chris Herbison/Brockville,ONT
22 15.057 59.773 44 Todd Ferguson/Prescott,ONT
23 15.144 59.429 20 Randy Earl/Brockville,ONT
24 15.153 59.394 54 Mark Chiddy/Boston,NY
25 15.170 59.328 5 Dave Wilgosh/Lyn,ONT
26 15.326 58.724 86 Adam Trickey/Mallorytown,ONT
27 15.341 58.666 38 Luke Whitteker/Iroquois,ONT
28 15.418 58.373 80eh Ryan Buzzell/Renfrew,ONT
29 15.616 57.633 8a Dana Aikins/Wellesley Island,NY
30 -NT- —– 11x Brian Copp/North Gower,ONT
Heat Races (8 laps, top 2 went to re-draw)
#1: Hoogwerf, Pecore, Aikins, Jalbert, Wiesner, Nadeau, Buzzell, Bernier.
#2: Sweet, Raabe, Willard, Whitteker, Ferguson, Earl, Billings, Copp (DNS).
#3: Ortiz, Susice, Wilgosh, Panunte, Murphy, Wright, Trickey.
#4: Ouellette, Giguere, Reakes, Turner, Savoie, Chiddy, Herbison.
Mr. DIRTcar Series Sportsman Point Standings (Through July 5, 2009)
Rank No. Driver Total Diff Wins Top 5 Top 10 Starts
1 01 Chris Raabe 307 0 2 2 3 4
2 17K Sammy Reakes IV 301 -6 1 2 3 4
3 99p Greg Panunte 286 -21 0 1 3 4
4 24x Brandon Sweet 266 -41 0 1 2 4
5 0 Jipp Ortiz 265 -42 0 1 2 4
6 92 Adam Turner 249 -58 0 1 2 4
7 11Jr Justin Wright 249 -58 0 1 2 4
8 74 Matt Billings 232 -75 0 1 2 4
9 66 Dan Wiesner 225 -82 0 1 1 4
10 38k Ryan Susice 214 -93 0 1 2 3
11 54 Mark Chiddy 200 -107 0 0 0 4
12 M1 Dave Marcuccilli 182 -125 0 1 1 3
13 67G Eric Giguere 174 -133 0 0 1 3
14 38s Luke Whittaker 158 -149 0 0 0 3
15 77Jr B.J. Willard 157 -150 0 0 0 3
16 06J Jordan Bennett 152 -155 0 0 2 2
17 20x Kevin Ridley 148 -159 0 0 0 3
18 83x Tim Serars Jr 140 -167 1 1 1 2
19 14 Jermey Pitcher 138 -169 0 0 0 3
20 55 Matt Hulsizer 133 -174 0 1 1 2
21 777 Tyler MacPherson 116 -191 0 0 1 2
22 17D Tom Juhl Jr. 112 -195 0 0 1 2
23 85 John Pietrowicz 104 -203 0 0 0 2
24 15 Shane Pecore 100 -207 0 1 1 1
25 2L Loren Lincoln 100 -207 0 0 0 2
26 62 Rich Bellante 98 -209 0 0 0 2
27 08 Mark D’Ilario 95 -212 0 1 1 1
28 v28 Billy VanPelt 90 -217 0 1 1 1
29 28 Alan Fink 88 -219 0 0 1 1
30 410 Mark Fowler 75 -232 0 0 1 1
31 10 Steve Savoie 66 -241 0 0 0 1
32 5 Dave Wilgosh 65 -242 0 0 1 1
33 8a Dana Atkins 62 -245 0 0 0 1
34 21JJ Jim Johnstone 62 -245 0 0 1 1
35 17 Marcus Dinkins 60 -247 0 0 0 1
36 2kH Chris Hile 55 -252 0 0 0 1
37 80 Ryan Buzzell 50 -257 0 0 0 1
38 29c Tom Conklin 50 -257 0 0 0 1
39 29g Steve Gray 50 -257 0 0 0 1
40 26h Luke Carleton 46 -261 0 0 0 1
41 27 Sheldon Hoogerwerf 45 -262 0 0 0 1
42 84 Claude Hutchings Jr. 44 -263 0 0 0 1
43 36C Mark Webb 44 -263 0 0 0 1
44 16 Earl Rudy 43 -264 0 0 0 1
45 3 Fran Hilton 43 -264 0 0 0 1
46 12 Brandon Hagan 41 -266 0 0 0 1
47 11 Donnie Lawson 41 -266 0 0 0 1
48 63 Chris Herbison 40 -267 0 0 0 1
49 66x Tabatha Murphy 40 -267 0 0 0 1
50 86 Adam Trickey 40 -267 0 0 0 1
51 9m Mark Olmstead Jr. 40 -267 0 0 0 1
52 11 Ben Wheeler 40 -267 0 0 0 1
53 83k A.J. Kingsley 40 -267 0 0 0 1
54 1s James Spano 40 -267 0 0 0 1
55 2a Ally Amell 40 -267 0 0 0 1
56 10 Josh VanBrocklin 40 -267 0 0 0 1
57 2K Rob Knapp 40 -267 0 0 0 1
58 4 Darryl Hilkert 40 -267 0 0 0 1
59 70 Brady Fultz 40 -267 0 0 0 1
60 18H Todd Henderson 40 -267 0 0 0 1
61 11 Brian Copp 20 -287 0 0 0 0
62 29J John Wilber Jr. 20 -287 0 0 0 0
63 20k Brad Rouse 20 -287 0 0 0 0
64 7 Cody McPherson 20 -287 0 0 0 0
65 20 Randy Earl 10 -297 0 0 0 0
66 57s Beth Schneider 10 -297 0 0 0 0
67 18J Joe Gwilt 10 -297 0 0 0 0
68 2m Jon Tesoriero 10 -297 0 0 0 0
69 2a Jason Brimmer 10 -297 0 0 0 0
70 9 Greg Gould 10 -297 0 0 0 0
71 25 Greg Belyea 10 -297 0 0 0 0
72 52 Jessica Power 10 -297 0 0 0 0
73 83 Dylan Evoy 10 -297 0 0 0 0
74 22z Zach Amo 10 -297 0 0 0 0
75 18 Bill Eisele 10 -297 0 0 0 0
76 k12 Rod McDonald 10 -297 0 0 0 0
77 17T Todd Town 10 -297 0 0 0 0
78 81 Christine Martin 10 -297 0 0 0 0
79 7 Verne Harris 10 -297 0 0 0 0
80 7g Kevin Gamble 10 -297 0 0 0 0
81 15 Bob Tefft 10 -297 0 0 0 0
82 06 Brandon Easey 10 -297 0 0 0 0
83 37 Ken Bearup 10 -297 0 0 0 0
84 3d Dean Patterson 10 -297 0 0 0 0
85 140 Mark Dixon 10 -297 0 0 0 0
86 244 Jeff Leslie 10 -297 0 0 0 0
87 111 Allan Wills 10 -297 0 0 0 0
88 29 Greg Birosh 10 -297 0 0 0 0
89 85H Robert Humphreys 10 -297 0 0 0 0
90 54x Stewart Garrison 10 -297 0 0 0 0
Mr. DIRTcar Series Sportsman Entries – July 5 (30)
Car# Driver/Hometown Team (Sponsor / Chassis)
0 Jipp Ortiz/Ransomville,NY Pizza Logs-Lee Heil-Ed’s Garage/Bicknell
01 Chris Raabe/Napanee,ONT Scott Industrial Services-Kingston RV Centre-Tyroute Communications/TEO
07 Guy Ouellette/Valcour,QUE R Tuning-J.Anctil Rona/TEO
5 Dave Wilgosh/Lyn,ONT City A-1 Radiator-Benson Auto Parts/Bicknell
8a Dana Aikins/Wellesley Island,NY Glen A. Gould Estate Construction/Bicknell
10 Steve Savoie/D’Acton Vale,QUE GMCI Express-Coffrage M&B-RJM Desmarais/Bicknell
11x Brian Copp/North Gower,ONT Price Paving-Jack May Pontiac/Bicknell
15 Shane Pecore/Cornwall,ONT Lightning Motorsports-St.Andrews Service Center/TEO
17k Sammy Reakes IV/Palermo,NY Whittaker’s Trophy Auto Sales-ProMotion/Bicknell
19w Justin Wright/Piffard,NY Mercer Milling Company-Yager Bros. Trucking/Bicknell
20 Randy Earl/Brockville,ONT Burnside Window Sales-Herbison Tree Service/Bicknell
24 Brandon Sweet/Watertown,NY Clarence Henry Coach-Powis Excavating/Bicknell
25 Steve Bernier/St-Hyacinthe,QUE R.Poirier Transport-Bernier Excavation/POP
27 Sheldon Hoogwerf/Prescott,ONT King Edmond Auto Sales/Bicknell
38 Luke Whitteker/Iroquois,ONT Rust Check-Jim’s Performance Plus/Bicknell
k38 Ryan Susice/Ransomville,NY Investor’s Service Company/Bicknell
44 Todd Ferguson/Prescott,ONT Splash Well Drilling-Polite Sand & Gravel/Bicknell
54 Mark Chiddy/Boston,NY D&B Motorsports/Bicknell
63 Chris Herbison/Brockville,ONT D’s Collision Center/Troyer
66 Dan Wiesner/Geneva,NY Monroe Wheelchair-Suttleworth Asphalt Paving/Troyer
66x Tabatha Murphy/Prescott,ONT Selleck Excavation-Splash Well Drilling/TEO
67g Eric Giguere/Waterloo,NY Safety Awareness Solutions-WB Automotive/Bicknell
74 Matt Billings/Brockville,ONT Billings Automotive-Stealth Racewear/Bicknell
77jr. BJ Willard/St.Catharines,ONT CAA Niagara Battery Assist-Speck Trucking/Bicknell
80eh Ryan Buzzell/Renfrew,ONT Valley Rent-Rite-Milwaukee Tools/Kidsports/Troyer
86 Adam Trickey/Mallorytown,ONT Lifetime Memorials/Bicknell
92 Adam Turner/Picton,ONT Paul Turner Auto Repair/Bicknell
94 Steve Nadeau/St-Robert,QUE 139 Auto Parts-KMJ/Bicknell
95 Tammy Jalbert/Cornwall,ONT Roy Motorsports/Troyer
99p Greg Panunte/Port Colborne,ONT Gaston’s Auto-Brian’s Tire-Montgomery Gas, Heating & Cooling/Bicknell
Pot Holes: Well over a dozen early-season point chasers indicated they have plans to follow the remainder of the Mr. DIRTcar Sportsman Championship Series, including 10 of the Top-12 in the standings entering the Cornwall show…. A pair of female drivers signed in on Sunday, with Tammy Jalbert and Tabatha Murphy not just making token appearances but contending throughout the program. Jalbert was the quickest in her set of pre-race time trials while Murphy was second-best in the second of four groups that ran under the clocks. Jalbert completed the entire 50-lap distance to finish in 17th while Murphy ended up 27th after going around only 18 times in the feature finale.
UPCOMING EVENTS
Title contenders in the 20th Mr. DIRTcar Sportsman Series make their way to Cayuga County Fair Speedway in Weedsport, New York on July 18 for the inaugural DIRTcar All-Star Weekend before participating in a rare mid-week special at Canandaigua Speedway on July 21. Tour activity resumes on Labor Day in September, with every extra-distance affair offering valuable points towards the overall Hoosier Tire-VP Racing Fuels Mr. DIRTcar Sportsman Championship as well as guaranteed starter status for the Super DIRT Week main event in October.
2009 Mr. DIRTcar Sportsman Championship Series Schedule
*All events subject to change.
DAY-DATE LAPS TRACK WINNER/LOCATION
Sun-Apr 5 75 Black Rock Speedway Sammy Reakes IV
Fri-Apr 17 30 Can-Am Motorsports Park Chris Raabe
Thr-Jul 2 25 Rolling Wheels Raceway Park rain-cancelled
Fri-Jul 3 30 Brewerton Speedway Tim Sears Jr.
Sat-Jul 4 30 Brockville Ontario Speedway rain
Sun-Jul 5 50 Cornwall Motor Speedway Chris Raabe
Sat-Jul 18 30 Cayuga County Fair Speedway Weedsport,NY
Tue-Jul 21 33 Canandaigua Speedway Canandaigua,NY
Mon-Sep 7 25 Rolling Wheels Raceway Park Elbridge,NY
Fri-Sep 11 50 Ransomville Speedway Ransomville,NY
Sat-Sep 12 50 Merrittville Speedway Thorold,ONT
Sun-Sep 13 50 Humberstone Speedway Pt.Colborne,ONT
Fri-Sep 18 33 Canandaigua Speedway Canandaigua,NY
Sat-Sep 19 30 Genesee Speedway Batavia,NY
Sat-Sep 26 25 Rolling Wheels Raceway Park Elbridge,NY
Fri-Oct 2 30 Fulton Speedway Fulton,NY
Wed-Oct 7 30 Can-Am Motorsports Park LaFargeville,NY
Fri-Oct 9 30 Rolling Wheels Raceway Park Elbridge,NY
Sat-Oct 10 30 New York State Fairgrounds Syracuse,NY
Sat-Oct 24 50 Black Rock Speedway Dundee,NY
@Driver’s (2) worst finishes dropped through September; last (5) events count.
DIRTcar Racing Northeast main office is located in Weedsport, New York on the Cayuga County Fairgrounds www.cayugacountyfairspeedway.com, home of the 2009 DIRTcar All-Star Weekend, July 17-19, featuring Hoosier Tire-VP Racing Fuels Mr. DIRTcar Championship Series events for Sportsman and Big-Block Modifieds in the richest short-track show of its kind in the nation — the $20,000-to-win Super DIRTcar Series “DIRTcar All-Star 100” on Sunday, July 19.
The Super DIRTcar Series for Big-Block Modifieds is brought to fans across the Northeast by several sponsors and partners, including series sponsors Hoosier Racing Tire www.hoosiertire.com and VP Racing Fuels www.vpracingfuels.com. Promotional partners include Rite Aid Corporation www.riteaid.com, Dig Safely New York www.digsafelynewyork.com and the University of Northwestern Ohio www.unoh.com and the contingency sponsors are Bars Leaks www.barsproducts.com, Bert Transmission www.berttransmission.com, Bicknell Racing Products www.bicknellracingproducts.com, Bilstein Shocks www.bilstein.com, Brodix Cylinder Heads www.brodix.com, Ferris Industries www.ferrisindustries.com, Integra Shocks www.integrashocksandsprings.com, Intercomp www.intercomp-racing.com, KSE Racing Products www.kse-racing.com, Motorsports Safety Systems www.motorsportssafetysystems.com, Penske Shocks, www.penskeshocks.com, Racing Electronics www.racingelectronics.com, Rislone Oil Stabilizer www.barsproducts.com and Wrisco Industries www.wrisco.com.
