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JON MCKENNEDY TAKES BENT CAR
TO WINGS AND WHEELS VICTORY LANE FOR WIN
by Denise
DuPont |
 The
Valenti Modified Series (VMRS) returned to New
London -Waterford Speedbowl on Saturday as part of
the tracks ‘Wings and Wheels’ yearly event. A stout
field of twenty-nine modifieds started the 100 lap
feature event all running for the win.
History has proven that Waterford is a track where
races are usually won or lost on the outside. Jon
McKennedy of East Chelmsford, MA choose that top
groove to make the pass for the lead with 28 laps to
go. Charging forward from there, McKennedy took the
checkers and crossed the line first to claim his
fifth VMRS win this year. “The car was just working
good and I knew I had to go where they weren’t. The
car seemed real good up top and it just worked out.
I want to thank all my sponsors and all the fans for
coming out. It was a long hot day.”
After the initial green flag, there were 32 laps of
green laps of racing as the circuits quickly clicked
off. The front of the field had just started to lap
cars when Russ Hersey of Swanzey, NH spun the #88 in
turn three to bring out the first caution of the
night. Several teams selected to bring their cars in
for adjustments and after a brief caution the green
flag flew.
 Ted
Christopher from Plainville, CT., started fifth and
was in third by the time he cornered turn two. His
car suddenly got real loose and he spun in front of
a hard charging field of modifieds. The melee that
followed was one for the record books as seventeen
cars jammed into one another on the backstretch. It
look like a real bad Friday night accident on the
expressway as cars piled into one another. A few
cars were able to pull away on their own while
others waited for the hook to get towed.
Three time VMRS champion, McKennedy, was among those
involved in the incident. He made the trip to the
pits and rejoined the field around the top ten.
“Teddy just got real loose, then over corrected and
I was right there.” He said about what he saw
happen. “It looked like my nerf bar took a lot of
the blow. We had a wheel that was pretty bad and we
had something in the rear end that was bent,”
confessed McKennedy. “After pitting, it drove down
the straight away a little funky but obviously it
was still good enough car.”
The modifieds returned to racing after the long red
flag stop. Green flag racing continued for almost 40
laps until the yellow flag flew for Anthony Nocella.
His car stopped in turn one after is appeared to
lose power. A second caution lap 70occurred when two
cars made and spun in turn four (David Schneider and
Sam Rameau).
After two consecutive cautions, Richard Savary from
Canton, MA. made his way past Berlin, CT’s Keith
Rocco to take over the top spot. “He gave me plenty
of room and raced me clean. It is fun racing him. To
be able to pass him on a restart that is pretty
good.” Savary disclosed. “Keith is good at this
track. I watched him in practice and on the track
racing. He has the most wins here and he knows the
track. He is the best of the best here.”
made a strong run on Savary’s outside to pass and
take over the top position. “I guess we were the
best of the rest. Jon was able to put on a tire with
about 30 laps in and that makes a big difference in
these cars. Tires make everything. So you have to
ride and ride, as we were. He was just better at the
end and went by. “I want to thank my sponsors here
tonight who are also my crew.”
Woody Pitkat of Sturbridge, MA. won his heat race,
started the 100 lap feature event on the pole and
then led the field until the major accident on lap
32 stopped his forward momentum. Pitkat selected not
to pit which was the same choice Rocco and Savary
made. Staying on the track, Pitkat was stopped and
checked out for a fluid leak. It was rumored that
his was leaking power steering fluid. After a
courtesy inspection check, Pitkat’s car was clean so
 he
was allowed to return to the front of the field to
take the green.
“I just tried not to give up,” Stated Pitkat about
his podium finish. “We lost power steering about lap
25. I did not know if we should come in or try to
ride it out. We knew if I came in there was nothing
that could be done so we were better off just trying
to let it drain off than rather trying to deal with
it. So that was what I did. I tried to race
everybody cleanly and give them as much room as I
could—not to hit any wheels or lose it. “
Pitkat has slid down to ninth in points without a
2016 victory in the books. “Tonight we needed a good
finish and to get back on the rebound because the
guys on the crew have been working so hard.” The #52
team has a new modified this year and they are still
working out the setup. “Hopefully we can build some
momentum on this. This is a new car this year and we
are trying to figure out what it likes. These guys
never give up so I did not give up on them tonight.”
VMRS teams will return to their shops and prepare
for their next race at Monadnock Speedway on
Saturday, August 20th.
Notes from
New London-Waterford Speedbowl:
This year you have had a lot of success, what
would you say contributes to the top finishes?
Jon McKennedy
“A lot of work at the shop and taking advantage of
every opportunity I get. I have a good crew and
Eddie (Flemke) at Raceworks built me a new car last
year. We changed a bunch of stuff on it. We added
the Mike Petit engine. It is just the whole
combination of things. With racing you need the
whole thing to go your way and you need the whole
package. This year things are going well for me. It
has been a great year.”
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Source:
Denise DuPont /
TheChromeHorn.com
Posted:
August 7, 2016 |
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