THE COUNTDOWN HAS BEGUN...

2011 NORA SERIES SPONSOR

2011 NORA SERIES SPONSOR

Sunday, May 24, 2009

A Wild Beginning to the 2009 SBS Season

As Jimmy Buffett says, "It's five o'clock somewhere"....well somewhere in this world there had to have been a full moon, but its effects were shining directly on Oswego Speedway's 2009 season opener last night.

Twenty-two Small Block Supers were in attendance for the Port City 150, with the class scheduled to run 35 laps. The 3 heat races went off pretty much without incident as David Gruel, Tim Barbeau and David Danzer all picked up their first checkered flags of the season.

Then came the feature! Before the first lap was completed rookie George Knight, Jr. driving the #1 from the Stan Gates stable punched the first turn wall back end first ending his night with substantial rear damage. After the green flew again, and before the second lap was completed, Dave Danzer got twisted between 3 and 4, scattering the field but not before a number of other cars including 2008 SBS Track Champion Kevin Knopp, Jack Patrick and Guard Nearbin all came in on the hook. Patrick was able to restart a few laps later after the crew (with help from the other Hedger teams) made a lot of repairs. Knopp, and Danzer were not as fortunate as their nights were finished.

Another caution between turns 3 and 4 a few laps later saw Rob Pullen and Ken Pierce come together, with Pierce slamming the outside wall, scattering the foam and doing extensive front end damage. Shawn Walker avoided the melee, but as he slowed and went high to miss them, rookie Mark Castiglia came up behind him, lit up the brakes and took off the right rear nerf bar of the 68 before also hitting the wall nose first. Walker was able to continue, but the other three sat out the rest of the race in the pits.

Just after the midway point, Barry Kingsley, rookie Andrew Schartner and Shawn Walker all came together in between turns 1 and 2. Kingsley and Schartner received enough damage that they did not return to the racing surface. Walker, after pitting to check the right front shock, adjust the tow, and get the nose piece lifted off the ground (duck tape is a wonderful thing!) was once again able to return to the battle. He would pit once more on an ensuing caution (for the Brian Sobus car which threw up enough smoke to kill every mosquito within a 1/2 mile radius) and the team replaced the nose piece entirely as the car was starting to run hot.

At the checkers, it was David Gruel in the Tim Barbeau Enterprises #50 taking the first of the season, with "Gnomey" Dave Cliff, Jr. (06) in second; Russ Brown in the Pike #60 taking third; Mike Bond (25) fourth; and Shawn "Big Daddy" Walker (68) rounding out the top 5. Steve Abt (85), Jack Patrick (9), Jason Simmons (91), Guard Nearbin (78) and Brian Sobus (79) completed the top 10.

Six cars finished on the lead lap. The feature took approximately 1 hour to complete. There was 1 red flag situation (for the cleanup after the lap 2 incident). Less than 1/2 of the field were on the track at the checkered flag.

Hopefully, this was a case of opening night "rust", and that all the cars damaged will be able to return next week.
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ON THE CLOCK

Our second installment of "ON THE CLOCK" features the driver who was the SBS Rookie of the Year in 2010...Mike Bruce. Mike's demographics look like this: he just turned 19 on March 18th, is single, and a Freshman at Alfred State studying for an Associates Degree in Motorsports Technology. He has been racing since the 7th grade (only 7 years) and has one feature win to his credit in the Mod Lite division. This will be his second season behind the wheel of a SBS. Previous experience include go karts and the aforementioned Mod Lites. His rookie season at Oswego produced one heat win and an 8th place finish in the season-long points race for the SBS division. Mike's parents Frank and Jackie are huge supporters of his racing, and he gives them all the credit. "My parents have gone far beyond making me happy, they support me 110%. I couldn't ask for a better set of parents-my dad does everything he can and more for me to be able to race, and my mom supports our every move. My brother, Robbo, has also been an important part of my career. Hopefully he will be getting into racing this year and I hope he wants to follow in my footsteps and be the second Bruce to be rookie of the year at Oswego Speedway in another year or two. He has done tons and sacrificed a lot for me to be able to race as much as I do. My sister Brittany has also been a huge supporter of my racing." Near the end of the 2010 season, the Bruce family purchased the former Shawn Walker #68, which will be renumbered #22 for the 2011 season. Mike lists his brother Robbo as the crew chief, with mom Jackie as "the cleaner" and dad Frank and former car owner and now teammate Rob Pullen (#2) as "the brains of the project". Sponsors of the #22 for 2011 include C's Farms, Woodchuck Saloon, Bruce Electric, Pullen's Plumbing, FFB Chassis (Mike's car is a 2005 model) and Bob Bruce. When asked who or what got him interested in racing, Mike told me that as he was growing up his parents always had the racing on tv, and when he became old enough (age 3-4), his dad started bringing him to Oswego. He would sit in the grandstands with his mom or sister and watch his dad in the pits working with Jeff Holbrook, Dave Trytek and Bob Magner, who he states are the drivers he looks up to the most. Dave Trytek and Jeff Holbrook gave him his first go kart, one that was hanging on their wall and weren't doing anything with. He eventually raced the "road course" inside the pit area of Oswego, and travelled to Avon once with a travelling series. Graduating to the Mod Lite division he ran at most of the dirt tracks in Central NY, as well as Evans Mills, Utica-Rome and Canandaigua. Evans Mills was the site of his first (and to date, only) feature win with the Mod Lite. Bruce considers the Pullen Deuce his best ride so far; "He (Pullen) gave me the chance to open some eyes, and Rob probably didn't even know my first name when we talked about my driving. I guess he got a good vibe and trusted me, as we picked up the car the day after we talked." When asked what he would consider his best moment in racing, Mike immediately says it was opening night at Oswego last season: "We started scratch in our heat. Being a rookie, I just wanted to keep my nose clean and see what happened; I found myself racing with Brian Sobus (who I later found out was a great shoe in the SBS division), and when the checkered flag fell, I had finished 3rd--I was excited! Starting mid-pack for the feature right behind Steve Abt, I once again just wanted to keep my nose clean and hope for a good finish. Getting the green and going into turn one for the first time in a feature, there's a wreck. I followed Abt through a hole and missed it..I was a little more excited. A few laps later, another wreck on the front straight with cars everywhere, and I somehow found another hole and got through that one, too, although it was a little closer. After the second wreck and things settled down, I found myself in 5th place, running with drivers like Abt, Mike Bond, Brian Sobus and Dave Cliff...I was very excited." He continues, "my worst moment came shortly after that (he estimates 15 minutes later) when I got a bump from behind and hit the inside hub rail, knocking out the toe. I pitted and when I came back out, I was a little angry. We ended up getting tangled up with a couple of other rookies ending my night. When I came back into the pits, I looked at my car owner's (Pullen) face and I don't think he was the happiest man alive with me because I just wrecked his race car...he was actually pretty understanding, because he had wrecked it plenty of times himself." Other than your dad, do you have anyone you consider a mentor? "Well, without my dad, I wouldn't be half the person I am now. I would also say Bobby Magner-he was one of the drivers I remember coming up to me my first race at Oswego and he told me to quit biting my nails because I made myself look nervous. He loosened me up and gave me a lot of good advice, too." In closing, when asked what the future holds for him, Mike put it plain and simple..."Right now, my future hasn't been decided. I'm hoping to be in a Supermodified; it would be nice to go further than that and drive for someone else, but times are tough these days and free rides are becoming slim, so who knows what's going on in the future." You can be sure of one thing, though....Mike Bruce is a talented young man, and with the right amount of skill and luck, he will grace the podium many times at Oswego and on the NORA circuit, and I wouldn't be surprised to see him follow in the footsteps of his mentors Holbrook, Trytek and Magner from the ranks of the SBS to the Supers in the near future.


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Oswego Speedway

Oswego Speedway


Hotlap Action 5/29/10

Hotlap Action 5/29/10
Tim Barbeau being chased down the front straight by Andrew Schartner and Mike Bond. Photo by Sue Delong

Racing Action 5/29/10

Racing Action 5/29/10
As Mark Castiglia roars down the front straight, he's followed by Jason Simmons, Chris Proud and Steve Abt. Photo by Sue Delong

Heat Race Action 5/29/10

Heat Race Action 5/29/10
The Small Blocks crank it up to take the green flag in heat race action Saturday. Schartner, Kingsley, Gates, Danzer, LaFave and Bruce hustle out of turn 4. Photo by Sue Delong

Vern LaFave Returns to the SBS Ranks 5/29/10

Vern LaFave Returns to the SBS Ranks 5/29/10
photo by Sue Delong

Steve Abt

Steve Abt
photo by Sue Delong

Feature Fiasco-Tony White Memorial, 5/29/10

Feature Fiasco-Tony White Memorial, 5/29/10
Guard Nearbin sits crosswise on the front straight as Vern LaFave does a brake check to avoid hitting him. Andrew Schartner's #18 sits nose first into the inside hub rail as rookie Dennis Richmond threads his way through the chaos. Photo by Sue Delong