1999 OVDCA/Ohio Caverns Touring Series Results
Saturday, September 18, 1999
Jackson Speedway
Jackson, Ohio
Fritter Wins Another Jackson Feature
by Shawn Sell
Zanesville�s Tracy Fritter rolled to feature win number three of 1999 in commanding fashion in a $500-to-win Ohio Valley Dwarf Car Association event at Jackson Speedway. Fritter took advantage of his outside front row starting position, leading all 20 laps to take the victory over rookie Pete Stackhouse. Stackhouse was also impressive, as he captured his first heat win of the year and finished the evening with the best finish of his young career.
Bringing the field to the green for the final dirt track event of 1999 were Pennsboro, West Virginia�s Terry Hall and Fritter. Fritter jumped to the early lead with Stackhouse moving into second and Hall in third. Hall�s time up front proved to be short-lived however, as mechanical problems dropped him off the pace early. The evening�s first caution flew on lap 3 as Mike Sell spun coming out of turn two, bringing out the yellow.
On the restart the duo of Fritter and Stackhouse once again took off, followed by Mark Jamison, Greg Watson and Bill Hostetler. As the leaders battled it out up front, mechanical problems sidelined many of the cars farther back in the pack. The first to pull off was rookie Brian Hammond in a car previously owned by Fritter. The next to get bit by mechanical problems was series point leader Jason Eddy in the Larry Janney-owned entry. Wayne Fitzpatrick, still suffering from a broken arm sustained at KC, also was forced to the pits after a brush with the guardrail flattened a rear tire. Terry Hall also called it an early night as his engine problems sent him out earlier than expected.
After the first caution, racing went green for a full ten laps with Fritter and Stackhouse pulling away from the rest of the field. Behind the front two, Mark Bernard and Tyler Hall had come up to join the battle up front. The yellow flew for the second time on lap 13 as Hostetler spun and was forced to the tail. Two laps after racing resumed once again, the evening�s scariest moment occurred in turn two. Mel Kiser, out for the first time in 1999, was racing in the back of the pack with Sell. Heading into turn two, Kiser started to spin and as Sell dove underneath to avoid the spin, his rear tire caught on Kiser�s, sending Sell airborne with all four tires nearly leaving the ground.
With order restored, the field went back to green but only for a lap before Kiser pulled into the infield, bringing out yet another caution. Two more cautions flew before another lap could be completed, with the first coming as 1999 Tyler County Speedway dwarf car champion Tim Jackson hit the turn one wall, ending his evening early. As racing resumed cousins Bernard and Watson got together sending Bernard through the infield and Watson to the tail. Two laps later, Hostetler and Jamison got together, sending Jamison to the tail. The remaining laps featured Watson and Jamison tearing through the field in an effort to retake their positions. As the checkered fell, Fritter and Stackhouse were out in front ahead of Hostetler, Tyler Hall and Bernard. Following the race Hostetler was penalized one position for jumping the final restart, handing third place to the 15-year old Hall. Bernard rounded out the top five and was followed by Watson. Rookie Larry Hubbard came home 7th in one of the best runs of his career. Rounding out the top ten behind Hubbard were Max Evans in 8th, Tom Rannoee and Jamison.
Heat race action also proved exciting with two drivers securing their first wins of �99. In heat number one Bernard jumped into the early lead with Sell and Fritter just behind. Fritter took second from Sell on lap 2 and reeled in Bernard for the lead and the win on lap 7. Behind the front two were Jackson who passed Sell coming out of turn four on the final lap. Heat number two was all Fitzpatrick as he took off from the pole to lead all eight laps despite constant pressure from Watson. The Hall�s staged a great battle for third behind the front duo with father Terry passing son Tyler on lap 5 to take the final redraw position. The evening�s final heat race saw Rannoee jump to the early lead before being overtaken by Stackhouse on lap 3. From there Stackhouse dominated the final laps taking the win ahead of Hostetler, Jamison and Evans. After a strong start, Rannoee was forced to the pits with a flat tire.
Despite a disappointing run, Eddy continues to hold the lead in the OVDCA point standings with just one race to go. Hostetler and Watson continue to battle it out for second with Hostetler holding a 13-point lead. Bernard and Evans round out the top five and are trailed by Sell and Fitzpatrick. Fritter now holds down 8th place ahead of Keith Bailey and Mike Rector. The 1999 season concludes for the dwarfs with a $500-to-win show planned for Sunday afternoon, October 3 at Shady Bowl Speedway.
Heat 1: Fritter, Bernard, Jackson, Sell, Kiser, Wilcox, Eddy.
Heat 2: Fitzpatrick, Watson, Te. Hall, Ty. Hall, Hubbard, Foust, Hammond.
Heat 3: Stackhouse, Hostetler, Jamison, Evans, Holley, Rannoee.
Feature: Fritter, Stackhouse, Ty. Hall, Hostetler, Bernard, Watson, Hubbard, Evans, Rannoee, Jamison, Foust, Sell, Holley, Wilcox, Jackson, Kiser, Te. Hall, Fitzpatrick, Eddy, Hammond.