FONDA SPEEDWAY IS BACK IN ACTION THIS SATURDAY AFTER A BREAK FOR THE FONDA FAIR
Story By: RON SZCERBA / FONDA SPEEDWAY MEDIA
Photos By: RACERSGUIDE.COM PHOTO STAFF
Fonda, NY –Septeber 13, 2016- When the “Track of Champions” Fonda Speedway resumes racing action this Saturday after the annual Fonda Fair, only three racing dates remain on the 2016 schedule. On Saturday, September 17 it will be Eion Hayes Memorial Night along with Back to School Night with all high school students getting free grandstand admission with a valid student ID.
Racing action will begin at 7:00 p.m. sharp with Triple 20 lap events for the modified, 602 sportsman, and pro stock divisions on the racing card along with the rookie sportsman and street stock divisions. Adult grandstand admission will be $15 for adults with a pit entry fee of $32.
Drivers in the modified, 602 sportsman, and pro stock divisions will draw at the pit gate for starting positions in their first 20-lap feature event with the winner of that race then drawing for an inversion of either 12, 14, or 16 for the second feature race.
Also, don’t forget to come to the track early and visit the Fonda Speedway Museum with tons of memorabilia from the past on display preserving the long 65 consecutive year history of racing at the Montgomery County Fairgrounds facility. Dave, Jackie, & Jessica Lape along with others who have helped them along the way, have done a tremendous job at the museum this year building it up to be just as special as the track is to many people who appreciate their efforts in keeping the history of the “Track of Champions” alive and well!
The 2016 regular season at Fonda saw a total of five rain outs but a summary of the racing events that were held looks like this in each division.
In the modified division there were a total of 14 events held with eight different drivers winning those events. Leading the way with five wins on his way to the track championship was Ronnie Johnson who drove the Jake & Nancy Spraker owned #1RJ to his second career track championship after also winning it back in 2011.
Next in line was Bobby Varin with a total of three feature wins as he took over the fourth position on the all-time win list with a total of 55 victories, over taking the late Kenny Shoemaker for the spot. Single event wins in the modified division went to Stewart Friesen, Pep Corradi who scored his first career win at the track, Danny Johnson, Craig Hanson, Jeremy Wilder, and Matt Sheppard who scored the win in the prestigious Jack Johnson Tribute event in August, which was his third career win at the track.
In the 602-sportsman division there were 13 total events run with nine different winners led by Rocky Warner with four wins giving him the top spot on the all-time win list in the division with a total of 17. He also captured his third consecutive track championship in the division in the Jake & Nancy Spraker owned #1J giving Spraker Racing a sweep of the championships in the two premier divisions.
Following behind Rocky in the 602-sportsman division was John McAuliffe with two wins and the remainder of the events in the very competitive class were single event wins for Brian Pessolano, Cody Clark, Tim Hartman Jr., Connor Cleveland, Chad Edwards, Tony Farone, and Brian Calabrese who captured the first win of his career in the division at Fonda after moving up from the rookie sportsman division after two wins in that class.
In the rookie sportsman, division David Manchester had three feature wins on his way to the 2016 track championship in the class. Travis Billington also had three wins in 2016 and was followed by Brian Calabrese and Josh Neal who both had two feature wins; Mike Peek, Rob Lanfear, and Mike Block who all had one victory apiece. In total there were 13 events run in the division with seven different drivers winning those events.
The pro stock division held 14 racing events in 2016 with seven different winning drivers taking the checkered flag in the class. Leading the way with five feature wins was Kenny Gates who was also crowned the 2016 track champion in the division making him a five-time champion at Fonda after winning the title back in 2004, co-champion in 2007, 2008, 2009, & 2016. Gates is also the all-time win leader in the class at Fonda with 63 event wins.
Following behind Gates in 2016 at Fonda were Luke Horning with four feature wins, Shane Henderson, Chuck Dumblewski, Jay Casey, Nick Stone, and Tom Denton all with one feature win apiece. For Casey and Denton, it was their first career wins at the “Track of Champions”, while Stone’s single event win came in the prestigious 11th Annual Hondo Classic in honor of the late Hondo Carpenter.
The street stock division was dominated by Josh Coonradt who won 12 out of the 14 events held in the division in 2016 on his way to his first career championship at the Fonda Speedway. Coonradt also sits eighth on the all-time win list in the division after compiling 15 wins in only two seasons of competing at Fonda!
The other two events in the street stock division at Fonda this season were won by Johnny Young and Rob VanAernam, VanAernam’ s win coming on a night where a bounty was put on Coonradt if someone could take the win over him at Fonda.
For more information about the “Track of Champions” Fonda Speedway please go to their website www.fondaspeedway.com or you can also like them on Facebook.
