The first win in any class of racing is always the hardest. We have seen that time and time again. We witnessed it again this past Saturday, when we watched Kyle Casper finally break through and capture his first victory. It has taken several years for him to finally capture his first Pro Stock checkered. He’s come close a few times, but has also met with much misfortune over that time. There have been mechanical failures, accidents, being in the wrong place at the wrong time, and a lot of learning along the way.
Over this past winter, he put a lot of that learning together and built himself a new car for this season’s campaign. That knowledge, with the patience he’s learned, and the maturity he’s gained, finally worked in his favor. He started on the pole, and led the entire event to his first win in the Pro’s.
Mike Brightman and Dave Darling, who finished second and third, were quick to Kyle after he climbed out of the car to congratulate him. He has learned the respect of most of the competitors over the years, and each one of them were genuinely happy for the second generation driver. But none more that his dad, Ken Casper. Ken has been by his side his entire career, and has spent many an hour in the garage with Kyle. Congratulations to a great victory.
The Everett’s Auto Parts Late Models had their first of the Propane Plus Power Five events. With only a pair of cautions slowing the event down, the action was hot and heavy. Propane Plus was offering up $500 to each of the top five finishers, for the first time out of 5 for the season, and the competitors did not disappoint the fans.
Vinnie Arrenegado led several laps until Charlie Rose worked his way through the pack and into the top spot. With less than 5 laps to go, something broke underneath, causing a shower of sparks. With 2 laps remaining, he was forced to pull off and out of the race. This gave Arrenegado back the lead and the checkered flag.
The race behind the leaders was exciting as well, with several drivers dicing for position, trying to get into the top five. Gerry DeGasparre, Brandon Dion, Jake Johnson and `Dylan Estrella were the lucky recipients of the extra dough. Thank you Tim and the gang of Propane Plus for presenting this.
The save of the night goes to LM rookie contender Jake Johnson. During the feature, he was running on the inside of someone, when he was moved up into a three wide sandwich. The car got loose in some heavy traffic, and he caught it before he lost it. Even though he lost a couple of spots, he was able to regain his poise and work his way back into the top five. Not bad for his second LM race.
Paul Lallier came into the night with one thing on his mind, redemption. After failing opening day’s post race inspection, he righted the ship and was laser focused. Unfortunately, he got to the party a little late.
Craig Pianka spent 2016 on the sidelines, focusing on his son’s racing on Fast Fridays. 2017 finds him back behind the wheel, not to mention up on the wheel. Craig spent most of the race at or near the front, battling with Ryan Flood and Rob Murphy. Both drivers made Craig work hard, with Murphy getting ahead of Pianka just before a caution came out and saved the lead for Captain Fun. Murphy held on for second, and Lallier had to settle for third, with a good run.
Chase Belcher made it two for two in the Sport Trucks showing that he is going to be tough to beat this year. But the excitement was watching Mike Lopes see saw back and forth on his steering wheel on his way to his best finish. He ran second for most of the event, and is one step closer to carrying that checkered around the speedway.
Another driver who is knocking on that door is Lenny Guy. Just a month before the first practice, he decided to make some major changes to his Ford Ranger. He got to the track on opening day with enough time to unload and line up for his qualifier. He had issues, and spent the week getting ready for week two. While leading the race, the back end slipped out from underneath him. While he was dejected after the race, he was real happy with the changes that were made.
It was good to see Ryan Flood running so well Saturday. He was racing the outside for the lead in the Sportsman feature, just a race after taking pilot lessons.
This week, we kick off the first round of the Phil’s Propane Triple Crown. The Sport Trucks will take center stage with extra distance.
Almost forgot, congratulations to Mike Mitchell on picking up his first win with the Granite State Pro Stocks at Riverhead Speedway. A few days before the race, he wasn’t planning on going. It wasn’t until his girlfriend Kerri said “Let’s Go”. Remember Mike, always listen to the woman. Well, as long as she’s thinking the same thing as you.
with Race Voice