8/2/09
Bob Magner claims the Mr. Supermodified title for the second straight year
By Dan Johnson
Bob Magner claims the Mr. Supermodified title for the second straight year
By Dan Johnson
The big dollar Mr Supermodified and MR SBS races once again lived up to the advanced
billing, as Bobby Magner and Stan Gates picked up electrifying victories Saturday night at
Oswego Speedway in front of a jam packed grandstands. Magner took the lead on lap 36 as he
slipped by Jason Spaulding in lapped traffic, and went on for his second consecutive win in the
$10,000 to win show. Gates picked up his first ever SBS win in a big way, as he inherited the top
spot after leaders Brian Sobus and Dave Gruel spun as they came out of the fourth turn to the
checkered flag.
Jason Spaulding and Tim Snyder led the 23 car supermodified parade to Donnie Forbes green
flag for the Mr Supermodified feature race. Spaulding shot out to the lead once racing, but the
race didn’t make it to the firs turn before the caution lights flashed for the first time. Todd Stowell
spun his 89 out of turn four on the get go, with Ray Graham’s 90 suffering terminal right front
damage to the 90, ending his dream at the big payday.
An original restart came, with Spaulding back out front in the 23. Greg Furlong and Dave
McKnight pulled their machines inside to slip through race traffic, while Doug Didero, Joe Gosek
and Otto Sitterly ran the outer part of the speedway to move forward,
Lap 4 proved to be a tough one for the field as separate caution flags for fourth turn spins by
Jerry Curran and Bob Bogwicz slowed the field. Back to green, Magner filed into third, with
Furlong, Didero, Gioia, Gosek, McKnight, Pat Lavery and Sitterly followed early on.
Spaulding began to open a gap between himself and Snyder with laps of 17.69. Lap 11 Magner
found the inside line by Snyder for second, and began to chop the distance to the leader.
Snyder’s run in the top five came to an end on lap 14, as he looped the 0 in turn one, with Dave
McKnight’s night ending with the 08, as fluid poured from the machine.
Spaulding and Magner made it a two car breakaway on the takeoff, as they pulled out from the
72, 3 and 00 machines. A few lengths behind the top five, Gioia held off Sitterly, Payne, Lavery
and Keith Shampine.
Sitterly wanted to be a player in the show, as he wheeled the high flying 7 by Gioia on lap 22m
and chased his way to the top five. A Lou Levea first turn spin that lapped lowed the field, as
drivers and fans each gathered their breath for the second half of the show.
Spaulding, Magner, Furlong, Didero, Gosek and Sitterly pulled five lengths on the restart from
Gioia and Payne. Gosek went to the outside on lap 28,loking to get by Didero. As the 00 went
high, Sitterly pulled the 7 to the inside, and made the pass for fifth by the 00. The 23 and 22 cars
were now 1.18 seconds out on the 72, 3, 7 and 00 machines, as they came up to the slower car
of Levea. Suddenly, Gosek’s 00 pulled pitside on lap 34 with a blown head gasket.
Spaulding was trapped behind Levea, not being able to maneuver by for three laps. As the
five cars raced bumper to bumper behind the Levea machine, Spaulding’s 23 bobbled as they
entered turn one on lap 36, and that was all Magner needed as he filled the inside lane, by the
sliding 23 car, into the lead. Furlong, Didero, and Sitterly followed, as Spaulding went from first
to fifth with one bobble.
Magner stopped clocks at a 17.52 clip his first lap in the lead, as he looked to race away from
the pack behind. With ten laps to go, he opened a .86 second gap to second running Furlong.
That advantage was erased on lap 41, as top ten running Keith Shampine looped the 88 out of
turn four,
Magner shot out on the take off, not letting anyone steal this one from him. Laps of 17.55 and
17.59 saw Magner pull out as they race wore down, and he raced under the checkered flag over
a second ahead of the 72, 3, 7 and 99 race.
“Pinch me, I cant believe this!”, the ecstatic winner stated just minutes after his first victory of
2009. “Billy, Hoef, Linda, everyone, all puts everything into this team, and all the hard work, pays
off. What a night.
“We’re happy with a second tonight,” Greg Furlong said of his best run of the year. “We tried a
few things, and failed. We put it back to where it needed to be, and it was better. We can build
from here, and keep trying things, as we aren’t running for points. We’re getting there.”
billing, as Bobby Magner and Stan Gates picked up electrifying victories Saturday night at
Oswego Speedway in front of a jam packed grandstands. Magner took the lead on lap 36 as he
slipped by Jason Spaulding in lapped traffic, and went on for his second consecutive win in the
$10,000 to win show. Gates picked up his first ever SBS win in a big way, as he inherited the top
spot after leaders Brian Sobus and Dave Gruel spun as they came out of the fourth turn to the
checkered flag.
Jason Spaulding and Tim Snyder led the 23 car supermodified parade to Donnie Forbes green
flag for the Mr Supermodified feature race. Spaulding shot out to the lead once racing, but the
race didn’t make it to the firs turn before the caution lights flashed for the first time. Todd Stowell
spun his 89 out of turn four on the get go, with Ray Graham’s 90 suffering terminal right front
damage to the 90, ending his dream at the big payday.
An original restart came, with Spaulding back out front in the 23. Greg Furlong and Dave
McKnight pulled their machines inside to slip through race traffic, while Doug Didero, Joe Gosek
and Otto Sitterly ran the outer part of the speedway to move forward,
Lap 4 proved to be a tough one for the field as separate caution flags for fourth turn spins by
Jerry Curran and Bob Bogwicz slowed the field. Back to green, Magner filed into third, with
Furlong, Didero, Gioia, Gosek, McKnight, Pat Lavery and Sitterly followed early on.
Spaulding began to open a gap between himself and Snyder with laps of 17.69. Lap 11 Magner
found the inside line by Snyder for second, and began to chop the distance to the leader.
Snyder’s run in the top five came to an end on lap 14, as he looped the 0 in turn one, with Dave
McKnight’s night ending with the 08, as fluid poured from the machine.
Spaulding and Magner made it a two car breakaway on the takeoff, as they pulled out from the
72, 3 and 00 machines. A few lengths behind the top five, Gioia held off Sitterly, Payne, Lavery
and Keith Shampine.
Sitterly wanted to be a player in the show, as he wheeled the high flying 7 by Gioia on lap 22m
and chased his way to the top five. A Lou Levea first turn spin that lapped lowed the field, as
drivers and fans each gathered their breath for the second half of the show.
Spaulding, Magner, Furlong, Didero, Gosek and Sitterly pulled five lengths on the restart from
Gioia and Payne. Gosek went to the outside on lap 28,loking to get by Didero. As the 00 went
high, Sitterly pulled the 7 to the inside, and made the pass for fifth by the 00. The 23 and 22 cars
were now 1.18 seconds out on the 72, 3, 7 and 00 machines, as they came up to the slower car
of Levea. Suddenly, Gosek’s 00 pulled pitside on lap 34 with a blown head gasket.
Spaulding was trapped behind Levea, not being able to maneuver by for three laps. As the
five cars raced bumper to bumper behind the Levea machine, Spaulding’s 23 bobbled as they
entered turn one on lap 36, and that was all Magner needed as he filled the inside lane, by the
sliding 23 car, into the lead. Furlong, Didero, and Sitterly followed, as Spaulding went from first
to fifth with one bobble.
Magner stopped clocks at a 17.52 clip his first lap in the lead, as he looked to race away from
the pack behind. With ten laps to go, he opened a .86 second gap to second running Furlong.
That advantage was erased on lap 41, as top ten running Keith Shampine looped the 88 out of
turn four,
Magner shot out on the take off, not letting anyone steal this one from him. Laps of 17.55 and
17.59 saw Magner pull out as they race wore down, and he raced under the checkered flag over
a second ahead of the 72, 3, 7 and 99 race.
“Pinch me, I cant believe this!”, the ecstatic winner stated just minutes after his first victory of
2009. “Billy, Hoef, Linda, everyone, all puts everything into this team, and all the hard work, pays
off. What a night.
“We’re happy with a second tonight,” Greg Furlong said of his best run of the year. “We tried a
few things, and failed. We put it back to where it needed to be, and it was better. We can build
from here, and keep trying things, as we aren’t running for points. We’re getting there.”
Stan Gates and Guard Nearbin drew front row starting assignments for the 35 lap SBS
extravaganza, with Gates taking control of the race when the green came out to start the event.
Mike Bond and Tim Barbeau went to the inside early on, with Dave Gruel, Russ Brown and Brian
Sobus electing to go to the outer part of the speedway to advance.
Gates kept the blue 28 in the top spot, with Andrew Schartner, Dave Danzer, Rob Pullen, Steve
Abt, Russ brown, Gruel, Nearbin, Sobus and Barbeau in tow. Brown was a challenger early on
as he wheeled the 60 to a top five spot by Abt on lap 5. Brown kept that momentum going as he
pulled by Danzer’s 52 on lap 9 into fourth, behind the 28, 18 and 25 machines.
Gates had fans take notice, as he timed laps at 19.81 as he looked comfortable leading the
parade behind. A grinding lap 12 front straightaway crash eliminated third running Pullen, as he
and Brown came together as they both went for the same piece of real estate. Pullen’s 25
suffered serious front end damage, ending his night, while Brown pulled pitside for repairs ro
the 60. Brown returned at the back of the pack.
One lap later, Danzer’s fine run came to a halt in turn four, as he ended up against the wall after
a chain reaction accident, with the 52 ending up with the worst out of the mess. The restart saw
Gates, Schartner, Gruel, Sobus and Nearbin in the top five, with top runner Mike Bond and
Brown deep in the field, looking t come up.
Gruel worked by Schartner on the restart for the runner up spot, and stayed low to work by
Gates on lap 16 for the lead. The four time winner in ’09 looked for his biggest victory of the year,
as with 10 to go, this one was going to be decided between the 50, 28, 18 and 79 cars. Sobus
wheeled under the ailing 18, and caught Gates in second. As Gruel led by 1.18 seconds with a
few laps to go, Sobus cranked by Gates for second place on lap 28.
A yellow flag for a five car first turn tango gave Sobus the chance he needed, as this yellow flag
erased the advantage Gruel built. Gruel remained in control at the restart, but as they came for
the white flag, Sobus was right on his back bumper. On the back straightaway for the last lap,
Sobus pulled even on the outside with the 50 car. The 79 seemed to pull out slightly as they
raced in turn four. With the checkered flag readied and fans on their feet anticipating a drag race
to the line, the 79 and 50 cars spun simultaneously in a plum of smoke in turn four. The rest of
the pack managed to miss the spinning 50 and 79 cars, but the spin took both cars out of
contention for the win, just yards from what looked to be apparent victory for one of them.
Third running gates inherited the lead, with one lap to go, with top runners Mike Bond and
Russ Brown on his tailpipe. Gates didn’t let this one get away, as he mashed the gas peddle as
soon s the green flag came out, and he held on for his first ever victory at Oswego Speedway.
“I cant believe this,” the elated winner laughed. “I’m usually not this close to the front, this is
great! This means so much, I really cant believe this!”
News and Notes…..23 supermodifieds were pitside, while 22 SBS cars were in the pits. Dave
Gruel, Kevin Knopp and Brian Sobus win SBS heats, with Bobby Magner, Todd Stowell and
Jerry Curran wining supermodified qualifiers. Otto Sitterly and Dave Gruel continue to lead the
point standings. Thursday brings the USAC Silver Crown series to Oswego Speedway, with
NASCAR drivers Kasey Kahne and Ryan Newman among the participants. Spectator gates
open at 3pm, with Silver Crown practice at 3pm also, and Nora practice at 3:45pm. USAC
qualifying goes off at 6:25pm, and NORA heat races at 7:30pm.
Supermodified 50 results
1)Bobby Magner 22, 2)Greg Furlong 72, 3)Doug Didero 3, 4)Otto Sitterly 7, 5)Joey Payne 99, 6)
Jason Spaulding 23, 7)Stephen Gioia 9, 8)Pat Lavery 2, 9)Keith Shampine 88, 10)Keith Gilliam 87,
11)Hal Latulip 56, 12)Lou Levea 61, 13)Dan Connors 01, 14)Tim Snyder 0, 15)Joe Gosek 00, 16)
Bentley Warren 15, 17)Dave McKnight 08, 18)Lou Levea Jr 04, 19)Jerry Curran 24, 20)Todd
Stowell 89, 21)Bob Bogwicz 09, 22)Michael Barnes 66, 23)Ray Graham 90
SBS 35 results
1)Stan Gates 28, 2)Mike Bond 26, 3)Russ Brown 60, 4)Guard Nearbin 78, 5)Jason Simmons 91, 6)
Barry Kingsley 23, 7)Dave Cliff 06, 8)Dave Gruel 50, 9)Brian Sobus 79, 10)Shawn Walker 68, 11)
Jack Patrick 9, 12)Chip Wood 2, 13)Mark Castiglia 90, 14)Andrew Schartner 18, 15)Tim Barbeau
58, 16)Steve Abt 85, 17)Dave Danzer 52, 18)Rob Pullen 25, 19)Kevin Knopp 04, 20)Brad Haynes
86, 21)Nick Demling 36, 22)Ken Pierce 67
extravaganza, with Gates taking control of the race when the green came out to start the event.
Mike Bond and Tim Barbeau went to the inside early on, with Dave Gruel, Russ Brown and Brian
Sobus electing to go to the outer part of the speedway to advance.
Gates kept the blue 28 in the top spot, with Andrew Schartner, Dave Danzer, Rob Pullen, Steve
Abt, Russ brown, Gruel, Nearbin, Sobus and Barbeau in tow. Brown was a challenger early on
as he wheeled the 60 to a top five spot by Abt on lap 5. Brown kept that momentum going as he
pulled by Danzer’s 52 on lap 9 into fourth, behind the 28, 18 and 25 machines.
Gates had fans take notice, as he timed laps at 19.81 as he looked comfortable leading the
parade behind. A grinding lap 12 front straightaway crash eliminated third running Pullen, as he
and Brown came together as they both went for the same piece of real estate. Pullen’s 25
suffered serious front end damage, ending his night, while Brown pulled pitside for repairs ro
the 60. Brown returned at the back of the pack.
One lap later, Danzer’s fine run came to a halt in turn four, as he ended up against the wall after
a chain reaction accident, with the 52 ending up with the worst out of the mess. The restart saw
Gates, Schartner, Gruel, Sobus and Nearbin in the top five, with top runner Mike Bond and
Brown deep in the field, looking t come up.
Gruel worked by Schartner on the restart for the runner up spot, and stayed low to work by
Gates on lap 16 for the lead. The four time winner in ’09 looked for his biggest victory of the year,
as with 10 to go, this one was going to be decided between the 50, 28, 18 and 79 cars. Sobus
wheeled under the ailing 18, and caught Gates in second. As Gruel led by 1.18 seconds with a
few laps to go, Sobus cranked by Gates for second place on lap 28.
A yellow flag for a five car first turn tango gave Sobus the chance he needed, as this yellow flag
erased the advantage Gruel built. Gruel remained in control at the restart, but as they came for
the white flag, Sobus was right on his back bumper. On the back straightaway for the last lap,
Sobus pulled even on the outside with the 50 car. The 79 seemed to pull out slightly as they
raced in turn four. With the checkered flag readied and fans on their feet anticipating a drag race
to the line, the 79 and 50 cars spun simultaneously in a plum of smoke in turn four. The rest of
the pack managed to miss the spinning 50 and 79 cars, but the spin took both cars out of
contention for the win, just yards from what looked to be apparent victory for one of them.
Third running gates inherited the lead, with one lap to go, with top runners Mike Bond and
Russ Brown on his tailpipe. Gates didn’t let this one get away, as he mashed the gas peddle as
soon s the green flag came out, and he held on for his first ever victory at Oswego Speedway.
“I cant believe this,” the elated winner laughed. “I’m usually not this close to the front, this is
great! This means so much, I really cant believe this!”
News and Notes…..23 supermodifieds were pitside, while 22 SBS cars were in the pits. Dave
Gruel, Kevin Knopp and Brian Sobus win SBS heats, with Bobby Magner, Todd Stowell and
Jerry Curran wining supermodified qualifiers. Otto Sitterly and Dave Gruel continue to lead the
point standings. Thursday brings the USAC Silver Crown series to Oswego Speedway, with
NASCAR drivers Kasey Kahne and Ryan Newman among the participants. Spectator gates
open at 3pm, with Silver Crown practice at 3pm also, and Nora practice at 3:45pm. USAC
qualifying goes off at 6:25pm, and NORA heat races at 7:30pm.
Supermodified 50 results
1)Bobby Magner 22, 2)Greg Furlong 72, 3)Doug Didero 3, 4)Otto Sitterly 7, 5)Joey Payne 99, 6)
Jason Spaulding 23, 7)Stephen Gioia 9, 8)Pat Lavery 2, 9)Keith Shampine 88, 10)Keith Gilliam 87,
11)Hal Latulip 56, 12)Lou Levea 61, 13)Dan Connors 01, 14)Tim Snyder 0, 15)Joe Gosek 00, 16)
Bentley Warren 15, 17)Dave McKnight 08, 18)Lou Levea Jr 04, 19)Jerry Curran 24, 20)Todd
Stowell 89, 21)Bob Bogwicz 09, 22)Michael Barnes 66, 23)Ray Graham 90
SBS 35 results
1)Stan Gates 28, 2)Mike Bond 26, 3)Russ Brown 60, 4)Guard Nearbin 78, 5)Jason Simmons 91, 6)
Barry Kingsley 23, 7)Dave Cliff 06, 8)Dave Gruel 50, 9)Brian Sobus 79, 10)Shawn Walker 68, 11)
Jack Patrick 9, 12)Chip Wood 2, 13)Mark Castiglia 90, 14)Andrew Schartner 18, 15)Tim Barbeau
58, 16)Steve Abt 85, 17)Dave Danzer 52, 18)Rob Pullen 25, 19)Kevin Knopp 04, 20)Brad Haynes
86, 21)Nick Demling 36, 22)Ken Pierce 67
