$2507 TO WIN MODIFIED EVENT AT FONDA THIS SATURDAY IN A TRIBUTE TO BOB SAVOIE
Story By: RON SZCZERBA / FONDA SPEEDWAY MEDIA Photos By: HARRY CELLA / RACERSGUIDE.COM
Fonda, NY – July 29, 2016- This Saturday, July 30 there will be a 50-lap modified feature event honoring the late Bob Savoie, which will pay $2507 to the winner of the event. All other regular divisions are also on the racing card, which will get the green flag at 7:30 p.m.
Savoie was known as the “Silver Bullitt” to fans here in the area and was a two-time winner in the modified division at Fonda, the first one coming on 7/23/94 and the last on 5/20/95. He is also on the 358-modified win list at Fonda with one victory.
Savoie had a lot of success at the Albany Saratoga Speedway where he was track champion four times in 1985, 1986, 1988, & 1990. The final win in his racing career came at the Glen Ridge Motorsports Park back on 8/2/2013.
According to the book FONDA! there were four shops back when the book was written in 2002 that built nearly 99% of the cars on the east coast and there weren’t many privateers who were winning with their own constructions. The notable exception was Savoie of Broadalbin, NY who won his first feature at Fonda in a #5 Olsen car in 1994. But when he visited victory lane at Fonda again in 1995 it was in a #5 car that he built himself.
“I built my own jig and even my own pipe bender,” Savoie said in the book. “And then the guys ended up asking me to build them cars. I built six cars and between Fonda, Devil’s Bowl, Bear Ridge, and Canaan every one of them was a winner.”
In the history of 50 lap events at Fonda there have been a total of 63 different winning drivers in a total of 268 modified (both big and small block) feature events from 1953-2016.
They include Lou Lazzaro who leads the way with 32 victories followed by Jack Johnson with 29; Brett Hearn with 21, Dave Lape with 20; Mike Romano with 11; C.D. Coville with 10; Ken Shoemaker and Alan Johnson with nine; Jimmy Horton, Danny Johnson, Doug Hoffman, and Bobby Varin with eight; Steve Danish and Bill Wimble with six; Pete Corey, Rene Charland, and Stewart Friesen with five; Harry Peek, Bob McCreadie, and Pat Ward with four; Jeep Herbert and Matt DeLorenzo with three; Ed Ortiz, Jerry Cook, Will Cagle, Gary Balough,, Charlie Rudolph, Billy Pauch, Kevin Collins, Tim McCreadie, and Billy Decker all with two; and George Gallup, Jim Luke, Don Hendenberg, Irv Taylor, Cliff Kotary, Tom Kotary, Buck Holliday, Ernie Gahan, Ron Narducci, Jerry Pennock, Lee Millington, Maynard Forrette, Buzzie Reutimann, Ralph Holmes, Dave Pelczar, Dave Buanno, Jim Winks, Wayne Reutimann, Pep Pepicelli, Tom Wilson, Tim Dwyer, Kenny Brightbill, A.J. Romano, Jeff Trombley, Steve Paine, Kenny Tremont Jr., Mitch Gibbs, Tony Pepicelli, Bob Savoie, Mike Mahaney, Matt Sheppard, and Larry Wight all have one win apiece.
Be sure to visit the Fonda Speedway Museum, which is open from 3:00 p.m. on for displays and memorabilia on this week’s tribute driver Bob Savoie. For more information about the “Track of Champions” Fonda Speedway you can go to their website www.fondaspeedway.com
