No Stopping Steve Arpin: Canadian Wins Fourth Straight UMP Modified Feature Of DIRTcar Nationals At Volusia
BARBERVILLE , FL – Feb. 10, 2007 – Can anyone stop Steve Arpin?
The Canadian star continued his joyride through the 36th annual DIRTcar Nationals Presented by Mopar Speedshop on Saturday night, winning his fourth consecutive UMP DIRTcar Racing Modified feature at Volusia Speedway Park .
Arpin, 23, of Fort Frances , Ont., blitzed the field in the fifth race of the eight that make up Volusia’s annual UMP Modified meet. He steered quickly from the fifth starting spot to the lead in the 20-lap event and never looked back, showing as much dominance as he had all week.
Brad Waits of Zumbrota , Minn. , finished a distant second, followed by Scott Weber of Festus , Mo. , Lee Hobbs of Bedford , Ind. , and Brian Strand of Bemidji , Minn.
The victory gave Arpin six wins in seven starts this month in Florida , including his sweep of the double-feature North Florida Winternationals on Feb. 2-3 at North Florida Speedway in Lake City . His only blemish remains a fourth-place finish in the DIRTcar Nationals opener on Feb. 6.
Arpin, who maintains a residence in Rochester , Minn. , explains his rousing success in simple terms.
“We haven’t had much to do on the car,” he said of his No. 00 after his latest triumph. “You know that when a Larry Shaw Race Car comes out of the trailer it’s perfect, so we’ve just tweaked and tuned on it all week. It’s performed flawlessly.”
The checkered-flag outburst has already made Arpin’s winter trip to the Sunshine State a financial winner. He estimated that it would cost him roughly $7,000 to spend nearly three weeks racing in Florida , and with his $1,000 score on Saturday night his earnings are already pushing $8,000.
Arpin is also cruising toward the DIRTcar Nationals UMP Modified points title. With three events remaining he holds a 44-point edge (394-350) over Strand and 68-point bulge over Joey Kramer of Hanover , Ind.
Kramer entered Saturday night’s action tied with Strand for second in the point standings, 36 markers behind Arpin, after consecutive runner-up finishes. But he lost considerable ground thanks to a last-lap incident that left him with a 17th-place finish.
Kramer, who started 15th, was battling for the sixth spot on the final circuit when he made contact with Adam Pierson of Fairlee , Vt. , knocking Pierson out of shape. Kramer was put back to 17th in the final rundown while Pierson was credited with a sixth-place finish.
A field of 55 UMP Modifieds was on hand for the program – the division’s largest turnout of the DIRTcar Nationals to date.
For more information on UMP DIRTcar Racing or the DIRTcar Nationals, visit www.umpracing.com or www.volusiaspeedwaypark.com.
UMP DIRTcar Racing Modified Feature Finish (20 laps):
1. Steve Arpin
2. Brad Waits
3. Scott Weber
4. Lee Hobbs
5. Brian Strand
6. Adam Pierson
7. Blake Jetvig
8. Charlie McNichol
9. Dave Groves
10. Shawn Peterson
11. Kevin Adams
12. Steve Johnson
13. Bruce Takash
14. Mike Spatola
15. David Cain
16. Austin Dillon
17. Joey Kramer
18. David McWilliams
19. Shane Williams
20. Jesse Snyder
21. Tom Seets Sr.
22. Jeff Sharp
23. Gary Clark
24. Ray Walsh
DNQ: Jerry Muenster, Mark Dotson, Phil Sturm, Kevin Hupp, Darrell Lowe, Julie McDermid, Aaron Ogle, Mike Wilson, Rick Scott, Gary Brooks, J.E. Stadler, Arlan Coy, Cory Seckerson, Scotty Owens, Randy Owens, Brad Miller, Bill Tuckwell, Mike Lewis, David Ostrander, Vance Wilson, Ed Lenhardt, Jared Hawkins, Chad Evans, Bruce Bellard, Todd Ferber, Charley Phillips, Benji Lacrosse, Ron Barker, Gabe Menser, Scotty Kincaid, Shon Flanery
DIRTcar Nationals UMP Modified Point Standings (after 5 of 8 events):
1. Steve Arpin 394
2. Brian Strand 350
3. Joey Kramer 326
4. Brad Waits 300
5. Lee Hobbs 290
6. Ray Walsh 288
7. David McWilliams 266
8. Kevin Adams 258
9. Mark Dotson 248
10. Kenny Wallace 240
11. Vance Wilson 236
12. Tom Seets Sr. 230
13. Ron Barker 212
14. Gabe Menser 210
15. Gary Clark 206
15. Austin Dillon 206
17. Adam Pierson 190
17. Bruce Takash 190
19. Julie McDermid 182
20. Dave Groves 140
20. Charlie McNichol 140
22. Ed Lenhardt 138
23. Jeff Mathews 136
23. Shane Williams 136
25. J.E. Stadler 132
