Two-Time: Ryan Jordan Drives From Eighth, Completes Last-Lap Pass To Earn Second Modified Win Of 2015 At Thunder Mountain; Chris Jordan (Sportsman), Adam Hilton (Crate), Coty Bishop (Rookie), Steven Deinhardt (Street Stock), Kamdin Maby (XCel), Cheyenna Ling (SRP) & Tim Vandemark (Four Cylinder) Also Score Triumphs
Photo Courtesy of http://thundermtnspeedway.com
CENTER LISLE, NY – Ryan Jordan became the season’s first repeat Modified winner in thrilling fashion Saturday night at Thunder Mountain Speedway.
Jordan, driving forward from eighth starting position, completed a final-lap pass of divisional rookie Colton Wilson to top the night’s 30-lap big-block/small-block main event. The Speedsville, N.Y., driver earned $1,200 for his second career triumph at the three-eighths-mile banked clay oval.
Jordan raced wheel-to-wheel with Wilson during the race’s final five laps before surging ahead with the checkered in the air.
“That was the most fun I’ve had racing, ever!” Jordan exclaimed after climbing to the roof of his No. R21 Hig Fab Chassis in Victory Lane. “Colton (Wilson) ran a great race. He had the outside working, but it left me the bottom.”
Wilson, graduating from the Sportsman division to run with the Modifieds this season, shot into the lead at the outset of the main. Jordan made a quick move to the front of the field. By the fourth lap of the main, Jordan had charged into third.
Two laps later, Jordan arrived in second.
Periodic cautions on laps 5, 8, 14 and 20, 21 and 22 kept Jordan from completing a pass on the race-leading Wilson.
“It seemed like it took my car three or four laps to get going,” Jordan said. “It took me a while to make a run at him again.”
The final eight laps spun off caution-free. Jordan closed on Wilson, peeling off to the inside lane with five circuits remaining. With the crowd on its feet, Wilson – running the outside line – and Jordan raced hard without the slightest of contact.
On the final lap, Jordan pulled ahead off the second turn and maintained the advantage to take the victory.
Wilson, of Dryden, N.Y., settled for a runner-up finish, the best of his career in the headline division on the Mountain. Nick Rochinski of Dickson City, Pa., ran a steady race to finish third. Invader Jackie Brown Jr. of Hurley, N.Y., advanced from 16th starting position to finish fourth. The Accord (N.Y.) Speedway regular was shaking down his car for the upcoming ‘Lightning on the Mountain’ special at the track on Sunday, June 28.
Point leader Mike Mahaney of King Ferry, N.Y., nursed his Jim Shear-owned No. 77X to a fifth-place finish with a deflating right-rear tire late in the distance.
Chris Jordan of Speedsville, N.Y., righted his string of bad luck to win the 20-lap Open Sportsman main, earning $700. Jordan led the entire distance. However, he felt significant pressure in the competitive main.
As Jordan led, the outside lane of the oval “came in” and Mountaintop, Pa.’s Ricky Ross Jr. rolled through the top-five. Ross swept into second and closed to within a car-length of the leader, settling for second. Kenny Hammond raced from 12th starting spot for third, followed by Kevin Jordan (from 10th) and point leader Eric Leet, who recovered from a pair of early spins.
Buffalo, N.Y.’s Adam Hilton won his second Crate 602 Sportsman feature of the season. Hilton, who started fifth, made quick work of the field. He arrived in the lead on lap three and was never seriously challenged. Pat Jordan, the current point leader, chased Hilton to the finish, passing Brian Mady on lap 15. Mady, Daryl Krebs and Randy Gates finished third through fifth, respectively.
Coty Bishop of Binghamton, N.Y., executed a last-lap pass of Cole Price to win the 15-lap Rookie Sportsman main, his first triumph. Bishop used the high side to race from third to the lead inside the race’s final four laps. Price settled for a disappointing second, a bumper off the win.
Steven Deinhardt of Deposit, N.Y., returned after missing a week to return to Barrett’s Race Cars & Components Street Stock Victory Lane following the 20-lap feature. Deinhardt advanced from eighth to the lead in just four laps and dominated the remainder of the distance. John Cooper Jr. finished second after starting 12th, followed by Donald Russell, Earl Zimmer and point leader Jonathan Carpenter.
Teenager Kamdin Maby of Susquehanna, Pa., won his first Thunder Mountain XCel 600 Modified feature, holding off his teammate Mike Mahaney in the 20-lap feature. Maby led the entire distance, but not without a significant challenge during the race’s final 10 laps from Modified star Mahaney, who had started 10th. Looking high and low, Mahaney was unable to unseat Maby, despite a yellow with two laps remaining.
Mahaney settled for second, followed by Brian Mady, Joe McCabe and a rebounding Will Eastman, who spun twice during the main.
Cheyenna Ling of Memphis, N.Y., dominated the 15-lap main event for the visiting SRP 600cc-Micro-Sprints.
Tim Vandemark, a regular in the IMCA-Modified division at N.Y.’s I-88 Speedway, dusted off his Four Cylinder and drove to victory in Saturday’s 15-lap main event. Vandemark executed an early, four-wide pass for the lead and held off the advances of Nick Kennedy to score the win. Chris Taylor, Ryan Wood and Collin Davey trailed.
Racing resumes on Saturday, June 20 with a full program of Modifieds, Open Sportsman, Crate 602 Sportsman, Rookie Sportsman, Street Stocks, XCel 600 Modifieds and FWD Four Cylinders.
Gates open at 4 p.m., with hot laps at 6:20 p.m. and racing at 7 p.m. Adult grandstand admission is $12. Seniors (ages 65 and up) and Students (ages 10-17) pay $10. Kids 9 and under are FREE. Pit admission is $30, with no license required.
For Thunder Mountain Speedway general information and a complete schedule, visit www.thundermtnspeedway.com. The speedway office number is 607.657.8202. On race day, call 607.849.7899. The speedway e-mail is thundermtnspeedway@gmail.com. “Like” Thunder Mountain Speedway on Facebook or follow @thundermtnspeed on Twitter.
Thunder Mountain Speedway is located at 91 Hunts Corners Road Center Lisle, NY 13797, approximately 25 miles north of Binghamton. The three-eighths-mile clay oval features hillside concrete seating, free parking and camping, a variety of concession items and novelties, a family environment and more.
THUNDER THOUGHTS: The pit area was filled to capacity with 116 race cars on hand for the quickly run show. The first-year Crate 602 Sportsman division reached a season high of 20 entries….
Brian Malcolm drew a roar from the crowd when his Coar-Clark Motorsports No. 119 barrel-rolled five times down the frontstretch on the 14th lap. After a quick evaluation, Malcolm fired up the car and continued racing! Unfortunately, he lost a wheel later in the event due to residual damage and was towed off the speedway….
Mike Mahaney took some practice laps with his SpeedSTR in preparation for the upcoming ‘Lightning on the Mountain’ event on June 28. The car looked quick and comfortable on the Thunder Mountain oval….
Heat winners included Marshall Balzer, Mike Mahaney and Nick Rochinski (Modified); Chris Jordan and Larry Hillis (Sportsman); Adam Hilton, Matt Brewer and Shayne Spoonhower (Modified); Dayton Coney and Shawn Davis (Rookie Sportsman); Earl Zimmer and Brett Barrett (Street Stock); Kamdin Maby and Nick Chase (XCel 600 Modified); Gary Kratzer (SRP Sprint); and Tim Vandemark (Four Cylinder)….
JUNE 13, 2015 RACE SUMMARY
Modified Feature Finish (30 Laps): RYAN JORDAN, Colton Wilson, Nick Rochinski, Jackie Brown Jr., Mike Mahaney, Matt Latwinski, Ken Titus, Brent Wilcox, Mike Nagel Jr., Butch Green, Chance Spoonhower, Brian Malcolm, Chad Cook, Marshall Balzer, Chris Stull, Billy Spoonhower, Tom Collins Jr., Byron Worthing, Mike Wilbur.
Open Sportsman Feature Finish (20 Laps): CHRIS JORDAN, Ricky Ross Jr., Kenny Hammond, Kevin Jordan, Eric Leet, Geordie Decker, Brandon Walters, Marc Goodwin, Dan Burman, A.J. Lord, Nicholas Mady, T.J. Frost, Larry Hillis, Jake Fowlston, Billy Spoonhower.
Did Not Start: Tommy Eiklor.
Crate 602 Sportsman Feature Finish (20 Laps): ADAM HILTON, Pat Jordan, Brian Mady, Daryl Krebs, Randy Gates, Todd Hayward, Isaiah Forward, Dustin Jordan, Josh Underwood, Josh Szymanski, Dan Pease, Jimmy Morton, Dusty Barton, Tony Komuda, Jerry Voorhis, Hilary Ward, Mike Dimorier, Shayne Spoonhower, Jason Caldwell, Matt Brewer.
Rookie Sportsman Feature Finish (15 Laps): COTY BISHOP, Cole Price, Shawn Davis, Rudy Roth, Tyler Keener, Dayton Coney, Zach Balzer, Wayne Ross, Kinser Hill, Kenny Benjamin.
Street Stock Feature Finish (20 Laps): STEVEN DEINHARDT, John Cooper Jr. Donald Russell, Earl Zimmer, Jonathan Carpenter, Jason Beebe, Shaun Boynton, Trevor Dudley, Dan Force, Rick Sinsabaugh, Brett Barrett, Pat Votra, Levi Davis, Mitch Hurlburt.
Did Not Start: Shane Wolf Jr., Rich Sharpsteen.
XCel 600 Modified Feature (20 Laps): KAMDIN MABY, Mike Mahaney, Brian Mady, Joe McCabe, Will Eastman, Kyle Fallis, Doug Windhausen, Nick Chase, Jamie Frantz, Matthew Colwell, Tom Shiner, Paul DeRuyter, Charlie Tibbitts, Bailey Boyd, Eric Boyd, A.J. Miller, Dakota Anderson, Drew Fallis.
SRP Micro-Sprint Feature Finish (15 Laps): CHEYENNA LING, Gary Kratzer, Chad Tibbits, Bill Nichols, Lisa Kratzer, Matt Padbury.
FWD Four Cylinder Feature Finish (15 Laps): TIM VANDEMARK, Nick Kennedy, Chris Taylor, Ryan Wood, Collin Davey, Guy Raymond Jr., Brian Nornhold, C.J. Wheeland, Keith Potter.
Did Not Start: Willy Turner, Kyle Rogers.
