Checkered pass

Published 12:00 am Wednesday, August 3, 2005

Shelby County Speedway seemed to be the hot spot Saturday night in central Alabama. Fans and drivers filled the grounds of the three-eighths-of-a-mile oval track and were eager to see an exciting night of racing.

The Hobby division kicked off the feature events for the night. Bobby Jo Robinson (No. 00) clearly had the fastest car on the track. Robinson led the entire race, keeping a strong hold on his top position. The feature race was filled with cautions including the last lap of the race involving Chris Revis (No. 07) and Gary Ingram (No. 88). The two drivers were racing hard for third but ended up losing their positions. Robinson went on to win the race with Hugh Patterson (No. 5) in second, Stanley Littleton (No. 3) in third, Ingram in fourth and Revis in fifth.

David Davis (No. 00) led the Pure Stock division to the starting grid with Johnny Carroll (No. 4) outside of him. Davis led the race until lap seven when he spun going into turn four. The incident left Carroll in the lead, where he stayed for the remainder of the race. Terry Fowler (No. 02) was running behind Carroll in second until Larry Hatchett (No. 01) stole the position with three laps to go. Carroll took the checkered flag first with Hatchett behind in second, Terry Fowler in third, Randy Fowler (No. 10) in fourth and Robert Hutsin (No. 63) in fifth.

The Pure Pony division was the next class featured with Jeremy Wells (No. 81) starting on the pole. Wells had a strong lead until lap four when his car suffered a mechanical failure. Steven Foster (No. 2) moved into first and never looked back after Wells left the track. Dave Harbison (No. 1) followed behind Foster and raced hard to catch him, but couldn’t get around him for the finish. Foster celebrated his second consecutive win of the season with Harbison in second, Brandon Werts (No. 8) in third, and Megan Barnett (No. 7) in fourth. Foster is currently fourth in point standings.

Jimmy Dean (No. 45) took the pole for the second week in a row with a qualifying time of 16.53 seconds. Dean quickly jumped ahead of outside pole-sitter David Yates (No. 7) after the green flag dropped. The two drivers kept their starting positions the entire race.

Dean was the second driver of the night to have a second consecutive win in the 2005 season.

Sandy Dawson (No. 88) started first in the Thunder and Lightning division with Johnny Dawson (No. 42) outside of him.

Johnny Dawson wouldn’t stay in the outside position long. Shortly after the green flag dropped, Sandy filled the second place position while Johnny grabbed the lead. Donald Ingram (No. 16) followed close behind the Dawson duo in third while Wade Carlee (No. 48) and Gene Norman (No. 46) fought for the fourth place position. Johnny Dawson went on to win the feature race with Sandy Dawson in second, Ingram in third, Carlee in fourth and Norman in fifth.

After a short rain delay, the Super Pony division took the wet track with no fear. Cody Dean (No. 54) started first with Eddie Pickett (No. 44) on the outside. Dean kept the lead until lap six when he scuffed the wall on the front stretch. Pickett took the lead and kept his position until the finish. Mike Rominger (No. 22) was on his way to a second place finish until the last turn of the last lap when he slid into the wall. William Moore (No. 15) crossed the finish line second leaving Rominger in third, Dean in fourth and Benny Pickett (No. 4) in fifth.

The Hogg division wrapped up the feature races for the night with Ted Denson (No. 6) on the pole. After the race began, Gary Woods (No. 77) and Harold Hannah (No. 23) began making their way to the front of the pack. William Adams (No. 12) stayed behind Denson in second until the last lap when he went off the backstretch of the track. Denson crossed the finish line first with Woods in second, Hannah in third, Donald Lunceford Jr. (No. 3) in fourth and Aaron Vick (No. 11) in fifth.

Shelby County Speedway continues its racing season next Saturday, Aug. 6. The track will be giving a guaranteed $300 purse in the Hobby, Pure Stock, Pure Pony and Hogg division. Check www.shelbycountyspeedway.net or call 669-6509 for track information