courtesy Marty Little

TBARA Results from New Smyrna Speedway, New Smyrna Beach, FL June 5, 2010

NEW SMYRNA BEACH, Fla. - Troy DeCaire, fresh off a sixth place finish in the Little 500, paced all 30 laps to win the TBARA winged sprint car feature event Saturday night at New Smyrna Speedway.

DeCaire hustled into the lead from his outside front row starting spot but things went all wrong as the 15 car field worked lap one. Dude Teate's mount suddenly lost power and he was tagged by Joey Augilar with Ben Fritz also involved. A red flag was needed to clean up the mess with the cars of Teate and Aguilar both finished for the evening. Fritz's mount only suffered minor damage and was able to continue.

When the green flag waved again it was all DeCaire aboard George Rudolph's No. 68 as he expertly worked the paper clip shaped half mile with precision. A yellow flag on lap 23 for a blown engine in Bo Hartley's mount regrouped the field but there was no stopping DeCaire this night as he motored away at the drop of the green to record his third TBARA main event victory of the season.

Veteran Sonny Hartley drove a steady race to collect runner-up honors over Larry Brazil, Brian Gingras and Tommy Nichols while heat race wins went to D.J. Hoelzle and DeCaire.

The tour next heads to DeSoto Super Speedway on June 19.

- 30 -

Feature (30 laps) - 1. Troy DeCaire, 2. Sonny Hartley, 3. Larry Brazil, 4. Brian Gingras, 5. Tommy Nichols, 6. Johnny Gilbertson, 7. Bobby Rose, 8. Shane Butler, 9. Ben Fritz, 10. Bo Hartley, 11. Sonny O'Sullivan, 12. Larry Brazil, Jr., 13. D.J. Hoelzle, 14. Joey Augilar, 15. Dude Teate.

 

TBARA RACE RESULTS FROM COLUMBIA MOTORSPORTS PARK, LAKE CITY, FL 5-15-10

LAKE CITY, Fla. - Patience paid off big time for Shane Butler Saturday night at Columbia Motorsports Park as he waited until leader Larry Brazil, Jr. bobbled on the last lap then sped past on the bottom side to claim the victory in the 30 lap TBARA sprint car feature event.

Steve Heisler and Johnny Gilbertson led the field to the green flag on the very fast half-mile oval but the guy on the move from the outset was young Ben Fritz who had started sixth. By lap eight Fritz was on the point and motoring away from the field until a caution on lap 12 for the stalled car of Larry Brazil.

When the green flag reappeared it was Fritz over Brazil, Jr., Butler, Dude Teate and Bo Hartley. On lap 15 D.J. Hoelzle spun in front of the leaders and Fritz could not avoid contact. Neither driver was injured but both cars were finished for the evening.

Brazil, Jr. was the new leader with Butler, Teate and Hartley in tow but they only got in two laps under green before Gilbertson looped his mount in turn two to bring out the final yellow of the event. The final dozen laps were all green and it appeared that Brazil, Jr.was headed for a win but with three laps remaining his car began to get loose and Butler just waited until Brazil nearly lost the handle on the final lap, then dove for the bottom, grabbed the top spot and drove to victory, his first this season on the tour. Brazil, Jr. claimed runner-up money over Teate, Bo Hartley and Aguilar. Aguilar and Brazil, Jr. won the heat races.

Feature (30 laps) - 1. Shane Butler, 2. Larry Brazil, Jr., 3. Dude Teate, 4. Bo Hartley, 5. Joey Augilar, 6. Tommy Nichols, 7. Bobby Rose, 8. Sonny Hartley, 9. Johnny Gilbertson, 10. Steve Heisler, 11. Ben Fritz, 12. D. J. Hoelzle, 13. Larry Brazil - DNS.

 

 

 

Go15 has added $400.00 to 1st place for the Lake City Race on 5/15.

This brings the total payout for the winner up to $1500!

Bio Based has also committed an additional $500 to the purse for Lake City.

The additional monies will be allocated as follows:
2nd place will get an additional $200.00
3rd place will get an additional $100.00
4th place will get an additional $75.00
5th place will get an additional $75.00
6th place will get an additional $50.00

The purse structure for the Lake City race held on 5/15 will be as follows:
1 $ 1500.00 13 $ 325.00
2 $ 1050.00 14 $ 315.00
3 $ 850.00 15 $ 305.00
4 $ 775.00 16 $ 295.00
5 $ 725.00 17 $ 290.00
6 $ 525.00 18 $ 285.00
7 $ 450.00 19 $ 225.00
8 $ 430.00 20 $ 225.00
9 $ 380.00 21 $ 200.00
10 $ 355.00 22 $ 200.00
11 $ 350.00 23 $ 175.00
12 $ 335.00 24 $ 175.00
We would like to extend a special THANKS to both Doug Hoezle with Go15 and Don Wilshe with Bio Based for their additional contributions.

 

TBARA RACE RESULTS FROM DESOTO SUPER SPEEDWAY, BRADENTON, FL 4-17-10

BRADENTON, Fla. - Veteran Sonny Hartley drove around Tommy Nichols on lap 16 and sped to his first TBARA feature victory in several season Saturday night's 30 lap sprint car headliner at DeSoto Super Speedway.

Things got off to a rough start in the feature when outside front row starter Dakotah Stephens broke an axle and spun in front of the field on the first lap. The ensuing melee took out point leader Shane Butler, Dude Teate, Troy DeCaire and Stephens.

When the green waved following the clean up it was pole sitter Steve Heisler out front with Hartley, Tommy Nichols and Johnny Gilbertson in tow. Nichols quickly worked around Hartley for second but a caution waved on lap five when leader Heisler looped his mount to put Nichols in front over Hartley.

The field reformed and it was Nichols the point man but Hartley was on his game this night and kept the pressure on before making a pass for the lead on lap 16. Once in front it was no contest as Hartley motored away until a yellow waved for debris on lap 28. The offending trash was removed from the racing surface and Hartley never looked back, taking his No. 27 to the checkers ahead of Nichols, Larry Brazil, Jr., Bo Hartley and Ben Fritz.

Heat race victories went to DeCaire and Gilbertson.

Feature finish (30 laps) - 1. Sonny Hartley, 2. Tommy Nichols, 3. Larry Brazil, Jr. 4. Bo Hartley, 5. Ben Fritz, 6. Johnny Gilbertson, 7.David Retzlaff, 8. Steve Heisler, 9. Larry Brazil, 10. D.J. Hoelzle, 11. Dakotah Stephens, 12.Troy DeCaire, 13. Dude Teate, 14. Shane Butler, 15. Joey Aguilar DNS.

 

RESULTS FROM TBARA AT DESOTO SUPER SPEEDWAY, BRADENTON, FL 3-27-10

BRADENTON, Fla. - Larry Brazil, Jr. held off the late race challenges of Dude Teate to win Saturday night's 30 lap TBARA feature event at DeSoto Super Speedway.

Pole sitter David Retzlaff hustled into an early lead over Johnny Gilbertson and Brazil but the first yellow of the night waved on lap six for D.J. Hoelzle's flat tire. On the restart it was Retzlaff still in commad but Brazil had taken up the challenge with Teate a close third. Less than a lap was complete before Tommy Nichols jumped a wheel of Shane Butler's No. 18 and ricocheted hard into the outside wall to bring out the red flag. Nichols was unhurt but finished for the evening.

The green waved to begin lap seven with Retzlaff, Brazil and Teate in line at the front but Sonny Hartley's mount shredded a right rear tire and the yellow waved once again. On the restart Brazil got a jump on Retzlaff and made the pass for the lead into turn one with Teate gaining the runner up spot.

Brazil continued to pace the event but Teate shadowed his every move looking for a way past. Finally, on lap 23 Teate used a lap car as a pick and took the top spot only to have the yellow wave for the spinning car of Joey Aguilar. The lineup revered back to the last green flag lap and Brazil went back in front over Teate, Butler and Bo Hartley.

The last seven laps were without incident and Brazil scored his first victory of the season. Teate claimed runner up money over Butler, Bo Hartley and Ben Fritz. Aguilar recovered to checker sixth ahead of Retzlaff, Steve Heisler, Jimmy Alivs and Gilbertson.

Heat races were won by Brazil, Butler and Retzlaff.

The 2010 tour's next event is back at DeSoto on Saturday, April 17.

First heat (8 laps) - 1. Brazil, 2. DeCaire, 3. Aguilar, 4. Fritz, 5. Heisler, 6. Alvis.

Second heat (8 laps) - 1. Butler, 2. Nichols, 3. Teate, 4. Gilbertson, 5. Darvalies, 6. Faulconer, 7.Stephens.

Third heat (8 laps) - 1. Retzlaff, 2. Hoelzle, 3. S. Hartley, 4. B. Hartley, 5. Hurst, 6. L. J. Brazil

Feature (30 laps) - 1. Larry Brazil, Jr., 2. Dude Teate, 3. Shane Butler, 4. Bo Hartley, 5. Ben Fritz, 6. Joey Aguilar, 7. David Retzlaff, 8. Steve Heisler, 9. Jimmy Alvis, 10. Johnny Gilbertson, 11. Troy DeCaire, 12. Steve Darvalies, 13. Sonny Hartley, 14. Tommy Nichols, 15. D.J. Hoelzle, 16. Frankie Hurst, 17. Larry J. Brazil, 18. Skeeter Faulconer. DNS - Dakotah Stephens.

 

 

GO-15 To Sponsor Quick Time Bonus for Qualifying at Five Flags and Mobile

The promoters and fans of Five Flags Speedway and Mobile International Speedway have specifically asked us to qualify at their tracks. The current revision of the TBARA rule book covers the provision for qualifying in Section IX, paragraph H.

Both tracks have worked in conjunction with GO-15 to provide a cash bonus for quick time and also for a new track record, should the existing record be broken.

The GO-15 Quick Time Bonus will pay $150 for quick time at both Five Flags and Mobile. Additionally, if the quick time is a new track record, an additional $150 will be awarded, bringing the possible total each night to $300.

The qualifying procedure will be as follows:

Each car will be allowed 1 time on the track for 1 warm-up lap and 2 qualifying laps. The best time of the 2 laps will be the cars official time.

Heat races will be lined up as follows:

Fast time car will start last in heat one. Second fast time will start last in heat 2 and third fast will start last in heat 3. Fourth fast will start second from last in heat one etc., etc., etc. until the field is filled.

The feature will be lined up as follows:

The top 6 in each heat race will automatically transfer to the feature. The top FOUR will go into the top 12 starting spots. Their positions will be determined by a pill draw. In the pill box will be four # 12 pills, three # 10 pills, two # 8 pills and one # 6 pill. Whichever pill is drawn will determine the inversion. The “non-inverted” cars, if any, will start straight up on qualifying times behind the “inverted cars”. The 5th and 6th place heat race finishers will occupy starting positions 13 through 18 based upon their qualifying time with the fastest in 13th. If there is not a “B” main, the remainder of the field will be set by their qualifying times with fastest in 19th. If there is a “B:” main, the first six finishers will start 19th to 24th in their finishing “B” main order.

NOTE:

This procedure is based on the need for three heat races. Should there only be a need for two heat races the same format will be followed with the number of transfer cars adjusted accordingly for a two heat format. Determination of number of heats will be briefed at the drivers meeting.

 

TBARA RACE RESULTS FROM NEW SMYRNA SPEEDWAY, NEW SMYRNA BEACH, FL 2-8-10

NEW SMYRNA BEACH, Fla. - Troy DeCaire was a man on a mission Monday night at New Smyrna Speedway as he worked the high banked oval to perfection to capture the 30 lap Tampa Bay Area Racing Assn. winged sprint car feature.

Brian Gingras and Sunday night winner Bo Hartley brought the 17 car field to the green but it was a short lived night for Hartley as his car lost power on lap three to bring out the first caution. Once back underway it was Gingras on the point and looking strong, but DeCaire had George Rudolph's No. 68 wound up and flying as he sliced through the field as if they were lapped cars.

By lap 15 DeCaire was the new leader and leaving the field in his wake when a yellow flew on lap 19 for debris. The field quickly reformed and it was good night Irene as DeCaire stormed to his second victory in three nights of TBARA action to kick off the 2010 tour. Gingras gave it his best shot for runner-up money over Joey Aguilar and Shane Butler with Ryan Litt rounding out the top five to the stripe.

Bo Hartley and Gingras topped the pair of heat races.

- 30 -

Feature finish (30 laps) - 1. Troy DeCaire, 2. Brian Gingras, 3. Joey Aguilar, 4. Shane Butler, 5. Ryan Litt, 6. Ben Fritz, 7. Dakotah Stephens, 8. Larry Brazil, 9. Sonny Hartley, 10. Jeff Banyas, 11. Wendy Mathis, 12. Dude Teate, 13. Johnny Gilbertson, 14. Craig Skene, 15. Ray Bragg, 16. Bo Hartley, 17. Steve Heisler.

 

RESULTS OF TBARA EVENT AT NEW SMYRNA SPEEDWAY, NEW SMYRNA BEACH, FL 2-7-10

NEW SMYRNA BEACH, Fla. - It was race time for the Tampa Bay Area Racing Association for the second time in as many nights as the winged warriors invaded the lightning fast half-mile of New Smyrna Speedway Sunday night with former series champion Bo Hartley the class of the field in the 30 lap feature.

The headliner need but one restart after Frankie Hurst smacked the wall on lap one. Pole sitter Hartley wasted no time hustling into the lead when the green waved a second time with third starting Brian Gingras in hot pursuit. This lead duo worked the high banks to perfection but Hartley began to put some distance between himself and Gingras as the laps clicked off.

From deep in the 19 car field Shane Butler was making great headway and got around Gingras at lap 22 for second spot then began his charge for Hartley. It was a case of too little too late as Butler managed to catch Hartley but ran out of laps for a challenge. At the checkers it was Hartley, Butler, Gingras, Troy DeCaire and Joey Aguilar.

Gingras and Aguilar won the heat races.

- 30 -

Feature finish (30 laps) - 1. Bo Hartley, 2. Shane Butler, 3. Brian Gingras, 4. Troy DeCaire, 5. Joey Aguilar, 6. Ryan Litt, 7. Dude Teate, 8. Sonny Hartley, 9. Ben Fritz, 10. Jeff Banyas, 11. Johnny Gilbertson, 12. Dakotah Stephens, 13. Jason Blonde, 14. Steve Heisler, 15. Wendy Mathis., 16. Larry Brazil Jr, 17.Ray Bragg 18. Frankie Hurst, 19. Skeeter Falconer.

 

RESULTS OF TBARA OPENER AT CITRUS COUNTY SPEEDWAY, INVERNESS, FL 2-6-10

INVERNESS, Fla. - The Tampa Bay Area Racing Association kicked off their 2010 season on a cold and windy evening at the tight confines of Citrus County Speedway with former champion Troy DeCaire collecting his first checkered flag of the new season in the 30 lap headliner.

Things got off to a rough begining for the 22 car field of winged sprints as two complete starts were needed for everyone to behave themselves. Larry Brazil and DeCaire brought the field to green with second generation driver Brazil gaining the lead. The first yellow waved on lap 4 for a spin by Joey Aguilar. Back underway, Brazil lead but DeCaire got past on lap 10 for with Shane Butler and Jason Blonde in tow.

On lap 14 Wendy Mathis, just back from racing in Australia, looped her family owned racer in turn 2 to once again bunch the field for a restart. The green waved again but only for a single circuit as visitor Craig Skene suffered a broken axle on lap 15, spun and collected Mathis, ending the night for both.

When the green waved again it was still DeCaire being chased by Butler, Blonde and Brazil as they worked traffic on the quarter-mile oval but on lap 20 D.J. Hoelzle pounded the front stretch wall and the yellow was out again. Hoelzle was not injured and the field regrouped for the final 10 lap run to the checkers. Once again they only had five laps of green flag racing before a caution waved for Tommy Nichols when the wing on his No. 55 collapsed and he stopped on the track.

The final five circuits were trouble free with DeCaire the victor over Butler, Blonde, Ben Fritz and Canadian invader Ryan Litt. Heat races went to Dude Teate, Dakotah Stephens and Butler.

Feature finish (30 laps) - 1. Troy DeCaire. 2. Shane Butler, 3. Jason Blonde, 4.Ben Fritz, 5. Ryan Litt, 6. Dude Teate, 7. Dakotah Stephens, 8. Sonny Hartley, 9.Matt Mercer, 10.Larry Brazil Jr. 11John Gilbertson, 12. Steve Heisler, 13. Tommy Nichols, 14. D.J. Hoelzle, 15. Joey Aguilar, 16. Craig Skene, 17. Wendy Mathis, 18. Jeff Banyas, 19. Ray Bragg, 20. Skeeter Faulconer, 21. Brian Gingras, 22. Frankie Hurst.

 

TBARA Live Race Night Updates Now On Twitter

For the first time ever TBARA fans that are not at the race will be able to get live updates from the scene on the Official TBARA Twitter blog. Also, fans at the event with Twitter access on their phones will be able to follow along with the additional info going out on the TBARA Twitter blog.

“Our Webmaster, Todd Michaels, has done an excellent job in setting up Twitter for live updates from race night”, said TBARA President Dave Shotsberger. “Now I can put up to the minute live info on our Twitter blog right from my Blackberry. This way fans everywhere can know exactly what is going on as the action is happening.”

To access the Official TBARA Twitter page simply go to www.TBARA.net and click on the Twitter Icon (little blue bird) that can be found in the lower right hand corner of the homepage. The information supplied on Twitter such as race results is for informational purposes only and is not official. Official results of all TBARA events can be found on the home page under the RESULTS section.

 

NEW SMYRNA FEBRUARY 7^TH AND 8^TH

This memo contains very important schedule and parking information for the TBARA Speedweek events at New Smyrna Speedway on February 7^th and 8^th. Please read this memo and the attachments in their entirety. I would advise printing out the schedules and posting them in your trailers. This email is the entire contents of the attached documents. The attachments are provided for ease of printing.

DUE TO THE SUPER BOWL ON THE 7^TH THE TRACK IS GOING TO RUN A COMPRESSED SCHEDULE. PAY PARTICULAR ATTENTION TO THE ATTACHED SCHEDULE FOR THIS DATE. IT IS VERY DIFFERENT. ALL EVENTS WILL BE HELD VERY EARLY.

SCHEDULE

We met with New Smyrna track officials on Saturday January 23^rd. We were able to work out a schedule for Sunday that works well for us and accommodates the needs of the track. The staff at New Smyrna is very cognizant that we are coming from Citrus County the night before and have made every effort to accommodate us. Make no mistake about it, they were extremely cooperative.

Part of the solution involves a new parking plan for us. Please read the section under parking carefully.

Attached you will find two documents. These are the schedules directly from the office at New Smyrna. It is the same document the track will be working from. Again, pay particular attention to the schedule for Sunday February 7^th. It is different.

Some highlights of Sundays schedule are as follows:

We have secured the latest first round of practice possible. However our first round is at 1200.

This year we will have our standard two practice times with our field split in two in each session. This is far better and less complicated than in years past where we had one block of time.

They have given us the earliest feature possible yet still allowing enough time between our heat races.

 

In closing out the schedule section of this memo let me cover one last subject. We must be on time. This is a very aggressive schedule. I cannot stress enough the importance of printing out and paying attention to the Sunday schedule. The TBARA and track officials will keep you apprised of the schedule and remind you when it is time to get to the grid for your event. You must have your car ready to go when it is time. No delays. Of course if there are extenuating circumstances such as crash damage repair every effort will be made to work with you.

PARKING

As you know it has been impossible to get our teams together as a group at the Speedweek events. The track has asked for our help with an alternative parking plan. By working with them and agreeing to this plan they have been able to put us all together and give us the best schedule possible both days, in particular on Sunday.

We will be parking as a group outside of the speedway in the parking lot outside of turn 2. This is the area at the corner of State Highway 44 and Route 415. There are many positives to this location but there are two negatives.

The positives are:

We have exclusive space for all of our teams together along with fuel and tires.

People arriving later on Sunday morning do not have to worry about searching for some hole to fit into.

For those arriving the night before, security will be provided.

For those leaving rigs overnight Sunday for Monday, and during our main events, security will be provided.

Since we are earlier features each night you will not be trapped inside. You can leave whenever you are ready.

We were able to get our standard practice format and a much better schedule.

The two negatives are:

No slabs

It can be dusty

The track has committed to prep the area as good as possible to keep the dust down. Knowing this you can now prepare properly by bringing a few sheets of plywood or tarps as you see fit. Many of you (myself included) have pitted out there in the past and found it quite workable. With all of our teams and support groups in one place it will definitely make for a better operation for all.

As always, if you have any questions or need further clarification please do not hesitate to contact me or any of the other officers or officials.

 

World Series 2010

Daily Schedule

February 7, 2010

 

 

 

9:00                  Gates Open/Tech Opens

 

10:00                Tire Room Opens

 

10:30                Fuel Opens

 

11:00                Practice Opens

 

            11:00-11:15                   Late Models                                         Yellow Stickers

            11:20-11:35                   Fl Mods

            11:40-11:55                   Super Late Models                               Red Stickers

            12:00-12:30                   TBARA Winged Sprints                                   

            12:40-12:55                   Late Model                                           Yellow Stickers

            1:00-1:15                       Fl Mods

            1:20-1:35                       Super Late Models                               Red Stickers

            1:45-2:15                       Sprints

 

 

 

2:30                  Qualifying

 

                        Super Late Models                                                       Red Stickers

                       

 

3:30                  Drivers Meeting

 

4:00                  Sprint Heats

 

                        Features Start

 

                        Late Models                             25 Laps                        Yellow Stickers

                        Fl Mods                                    25 Laps

                        Sprints                         30 Laps                        Red Stickers

                        Super Late Models                   30 Laps

 

 

World Series 2010

Daily Schedule

February 8, 2010

9:00                  Gates Open

 

10:00                Tire Room Opens

 

10:30                Fuel Opens

 

11:30                Practice Opens

 

            11:30-11:45                   Tour Mods

            11:50-12:05                   Crate/ASA Late Models             Green Stickers

            12:10- 12:25                  SK Mods

            12:30-12:45                   Fl Mods

            12:50-1:05                     Tour Mods

            1:10-1:25                       Crate/ASA Late Models             Green Stickers

            1:30-1:45                       SK Mods                                              Red Stickers

            1:50-2:05                       Fl Mods

            2:10-2:40               Sprints 

            2:45-3:00                       Late Models                                         Yellow Stickers

            3:05-3:20               Super Late Models                           Red Stickers                                                                     

           3:20-3:50               Sprints                                            

           3:50-4:05                        Antique Racecars

 

4:30                Qualifying

 

                       SK Mods

                       Tours

 

6:15               Drivers Meeting

 

7:30               Sprints Heats                                          8 Laps

 

                     Features Starts    

                    

                     Tour Mods                                                          25 Laps

Antique Racecars                                             20 Laps

                     Crate/ASA Late Models                            25 Laps

                     Sprints                                                    30 Laps

                     SK Mods                                                 20 Laps

                        FL Mods                                                           25 Laps                             

 

 

THE TBARA CROWNS THEIR JEWELS

The TBARA ( Tampa Bay Area Racing Association ) held their annual awards banquet on January 9, 2010 in Tampa, FL to crown the best of the best for the premier pavement series in the Southeast. Dave Steele won 9 races in 2009 on his way to a second championship with the series for his car owners, Job Site Concrete and Lenny Puglio. Following Steele in the Driver's Championship race were Troy DeCaire and Shane Butler. Accepting the honors for the Owner's Championship was George Rudolph whose car was driven by DeCaire during the 2009 season. The Rookie of the Year crown went to Dave Shotsberger. Shotsberger was a true rookie and had never driven any type of racecar previously. The gala was graced by Sonny Hartley as the Master of Ceremony and by Mark "Bones" Bourcier as a special guest speaker. In addition to the three championships, the TBARA recognized three individuals for their dedication and special talents. The Advanced Media Person Award went to Wendy Mathis. The Golden Wrench Award was won by Steele's crew chief, Todd Schmidt. And the Sportsman of the Year Award went to Larry J. Brazil, Jr . The TBARA starts their 2010 campaign in February. Stay up to date at www.TBARA.net .

 

The 2010 TBARA Membership form is now available online at www.tbara.net . Simply go to the ABOUT tab and you will see a drop down menu item that says “Member Application”. Click on this link and you will be taken to a page where a link to the PDF form is provided. Please print out the form and mail it to the address provided with the appropriate funds. Here is a direct link to the page: http://tbara.net/?page_id=342

 

As a reminder, owners with a current TBARA number have first right to their existing number until January 31, 2010. After that any number not registered is open to anyone on a first come basis. So if you want to retain your existing number make sure you register by January 31 2010.

 

 

RESULTS OF TBARA SPRINT CARS AT DESOTO SPEEDWAY, BRADENTON, FL 9-19-09

BRADNETON, Fla. - TBARA point leader David Steele aided his own cause Saturday night at DeSoto Super Speedway as he edged Shane Butler for the victory in the 30 lap headliner for winged sprint cars.

Veteran Sonny Hartley was the early story as he jumped from his pole starting position and paced the first 20 laps. A yellow waved at that point for the slowing car of David Slawiak. Steele and Butler had come from mid pack in the 26 car field and on the restart Steele hustled his No. 14 around Hartley for the lead with Butler knocking on the door. The second yellow of the event came out on lap 27 for Larry Brazil's slowing mount to once again bunch the field. It was a shoot out to the checkers with Steele still in front but Butler was able to work around Hartley for runner up honors with Hartley third at the checkers. Mickey Kempgins and Troy DeCaire rounded out the top five in the very competitive field.

Heat race victories went to Brazil, Bo Hartley and DeCaire.

First heat (8 laps) - 1. Larry Brazil, Jr., 2. Steve Heisler, 3. Tommy Nichols, 4. Mickey Kempgins, 5. Dave Shots- berger, 6. Tra Pissot, 7. Johnny Gilbertson, 8. Nick Manakis.

Second heat (8 laps) - 1. Bo Hartley, 2. Shane Hartley, 3. Wendy Mathis, 4. Dustin Perez, 5. Ray Bragg, Jr., 6. Skeeter Falconer, 7. Rick Voicey, 8. Ben Fritz.

Third heat (8 laps) - 1. Troy DeCaire, 2. Sonny Hartley, 3. Dude Teate, 4. David Steele, 5. David Slawiak, 6. Jimmy Alvis, Jr., 7. Frankie Hurst, 8. Steve Darvalies.

Feature (30 laps) 1. Steele, 2. Butler, 3. S. Hartley, 4. Kempgens, 5. DeCaire, 6. Nichols, 7. Bragg, 8. B. Hartley, 9. Mathis, 10. Heisler, 11. Perez, 12. Shotsberger, 13. Fritz, 14. Pissot, 15. Slawiak, 16. Voicey, 17. Brazil, 18. Alvis, 19. Teate, 20. Gilbertson, 21. Manakis, 22. Hurst, 23. Stephens, 24. Falconer, 25. Darvalies, 26. Hoelzle DNS.

 

TBARA EVENT AT DESOTO SUPER SPEEDWAY, BRADENTON, FL 8-30-09

 BRADENTON, Fla. - TBARA point leader David Steele continued his mastery of the pavement sprint car group Saturday night at DeSoto Super Speedway easily winning the 30 lap main event.

The feature got off to a poor start when several cars tangled and young Dakotah Stephens found the turn four wall to end his night. Todd Schmidt and Johnny Gilbertson suffered problems and retired and Shane Butler spun harmlessly and restarted. The second attempt at a start was nearly as bad but only the car of Ben Fritz was damaged badly enough to end his night.

When things finally settled down it was former series champion Bo Hartley easily in command as he began to stretch his margin over what had been a 17 car starting field. Meanwhile, Steele had worked forward from his 12th starting position and had Hartley in sight when Hartley's mount suffered a broken suspension on lap 11 and retired. Steele took over at that point and was never challenged as he nearly lapped the entire field. Butler claimed runner-up money over Jim Alvis, Steve Heisler and Dude Teate.

Troy DeCaire and Steele won the heat races.

First Heat ( 8 laps) 1. Troy DeCaire, 2. Todd Schmidt, 3. Steve Heisler, 4. Larry Brazil, Jr., 5. Dude Teate, 6. Sonny Hartley, 7. Dakotah Stephens, 8. Jimmy Alvis.

Second Heat ( 8 laps) 1. David Steele, 2. Jim Alvis,Sr., 3. Ben Fritz, 4. Wendy Mathis, 5. Bo Hartley, 6. Shane Butler, 7. Dave Shotsberger, 8. Mike Koss.

Feature (30 laps) 1. Steele, 2. Butler, 3. Alvis, Sr., 4. Heisler, 5. Teate, 6. Brazil, 7. Mathis, 8. Alvis, 9. Shotsbertger, 10. Koss, 11. B.Hartley, 12. DeCaire, 13. S. Hartley, 14. Fritz, 15. Gilbertson, 16. Schmidt, 17. Stephens.

 

 

TBARA RACE RESULTS FROM DESOTO SUPER SPEEDWAY, BRADENTON, FL 7-18-09

BRADENTON, Fla. - There were strange happenings Saturday night at DeSoto Super Speedway but Larry J. Brazil thought things were just fine as he sped to his first TBARA feature victory of the season in the 30 lap sprint car headliner.

Young Dakotah Stephens set the early pace from his pole position with Brazil hot on his tail as they blasted around DeSoto's banked 3/8 mile oval. There was mad slicing and dicing throughout the 22 car field but a yellow waved on lap 17 for the stalled mount of Dude Teate on the back chute.

The field regrouped with Stephens leading Brazil, Joey Aguilar and Mickey Kempgens. Brazil got past Stephens on lap 18 for the lead and on lap 19 Aguilar made a banzi move under Stephens for second spot and the two touched with Stephens' No. 19 going hard into the outside wall in turn 4. A red flag waved immediately and safety crews rushed to Stephens' demolished racer. The youngster was helped out of his car, shaken but uninjured. Aguilar drew a black flag for rough driving and was finished for the evening.

On the restart Brazil easily kept his mount on the point ahead of Blaze Martin and Kempgens with the action slowed again for a spin by Dustin Perez on lap 22. The field closed once again but Brazil was not to be denied this night as he rocketed ahead of the field again and crossed the stripe first for the checkers over Martin, Kempgens, Troy DeCaire and Shane Butler. David Steele, Wendy Mathis, Ben Fritz, Dave Shotsberger and Tommy Nichols rounded out the top 10 finishers.

Heat race wins fell to Shotsberger, DeCaire and Stephens.

- 30 -

First heat ( 8 laps) - 1. Dave Shotsberger, 2. Joey Aguilar, 3. Ben Fritz, 4. Tommy Nichols, 5. David Steele, 6. Little Jimmy Alvis, 7. Traci DeCaire. Jim Alvis DNS.

Second heat ( 8 laps) - 1. Troy DeCaire, 2. Larry J Brazil, 3. Wendy Mathis, 4. Blaze Martin, 5. Dude Teate, 6. Steve Heilser, 7. Jason Bradford.

Third heat ( 8 laps) - 1. Dakotah Stephens, 2. Mickey Kempgens, 3. Shane Butler, 4. Greg Leonard, 5. Stephen Bradley, 6. Dustin Perez. Todd Schmidt DNS.

Feature (30 laps) 1. Brazil, 2. Martin, 3. Kempgens, 4. Troy DeCaire, 5. Butler, 6. Steele, 7. Mathis, 8. Fritz, 9. Shotsberger, 10. Nichols, 11. Bradley, 12. Perez, 13. Bradford, 14. Little Jimmy Alvis, 15. Stephens, 16. Heisler, 17. Teate, 18. Leonard, 19. Traci DeCaire, 20. Jim Alvis, 21. Schmidt. Aguilar DQ.

 

TBARA RACE RESULTS FROM MOBILE INT'L. SPEEDWAY, IRVINGTON, ALA. 7-11-09

 IRVINGTON, Ala. - It was round two of the Florabama TBARA Tour on the Gulf Coast, but the like the night previous at Five Flags in Pensacola the man on top when the checkers waved after 30 laps was David Steele and his fleet No. 14 winged sprinter.

Tommy Nichols brought the 18 car field to the green flag and set the pace for the first three laps until a yellow waved for Wendy Mathis who stopped her car on the backstretch with driveline failure. When the green waved again it was still Nichols in command but Steele, who'd started 12th, had the wick turned up and was coming strong.

Steele displaced Nichols for the lead on lap seven and set sail around the banked half-mile oval, his favorite type of track. Troy DeCaire closed the gap as lapped traffic slowed Steele briefly until a lap 18 yellow flag for a spin by Dustin Perez who collected Dave Shotsberger in the process.

Once the debris was cleaned up and the green waved again it was all Steele who simply motored away to a 10 car length victory over DeCaire. Rookie Greg Leonard was third ahead of Joey Aguilar, Shane Butler and Nichols.

- 30 -

First heat (8 laps) - 1. Dakotah Stephens, 2. Joey Aguilar, 3. Shane Butler, 4. Larry Brazil, Jr., 5. David Steele, 6. Greg Leonard, 7. Dude Teate, 8. Little Jimmy Alvis, 9. Stan Butler.

Second heat (8 laps) - 1. Tommy Nichols, 2. Mickey Kempgens, 3. Bo Hartley, 4. Dustin Perez, 5. Steve Heisler, 6. Dave Shotsberger, 7. Bobby Rose.

Feature (30 laps) - 1. Steele, 2. DeCaire, 3. Leonard, 4. Aguilar, 5. Shane Butler, 6. Nichols, 7. Stephens, 8. Teate, 9. Brazil, 10. Hartley, 11. Perez, 12. Alvis, 13. Kempgens, 14.Shotsberger, 15. Rose, 16. Mathis, 17.Heisler, 18. Stan Butler.

 

TBARA RACE RESULTS FROM FIVE FLAGS SPEEDWAY, PENSACOLA, FLA 7-10-09

 

 PENSACOLA, Fla. - The Tampa Bay Area Racing Association made their first visit to Five Flags Speedway in 25 years Friday night and the packed grandstand was not disappointed as veteran David Steele wheeled his jet black No. 14 winged sprint car to a convincing victory in the 30 lap feature event.

Larry Brazil Jr. hustled from the pole position to head the 24 car field but it was short lived as little Jimmy Alvis looped his No. 21 on the front chute to bring out a yellow flag and a complete restart. The field realigned and once again it was Brazil out front with the field in tow. By lap 10 Mickey Kempgens was the man out front as Steele had sliced through the field and closed in on Kempgens but on lap 16 the yellow waved as Kempgens suffered mechanical failure and stopped on the track.

When the green waved for the restart Steele was in the catbird seat out front, but Brian Gingras stalled and the start was called back. The start was good the next time and away Steele went, leading the strong field around the quick half-mile oval to the checkers without further incident. Shane Butler gave chase but settled for runner-up money ahead of Bo Hartley, Troy DeCaire and Brazil.

Heat race victories went to Brazil, Steele and Kempgens.

- 30 -

First heat (8 laps) - 1. Larry Brazil, Jr., 2. Tommy Nichols, 3. Troy DeCaire, 4. Dave Shotsberger, 5. Stan Butler, 6. Gary Gimmler, 7. Jimmy Alvis.

Second heat (8 laps) - 1. David Steele, 2. Joey Aguilar, 3. Dude Teate, 4. Bobby Rose, 5. Michael Miller, 6. Wendy Mathis.

Third heat (8 laps) - 1. Mickey Kempgens, 2. Dustin Perez, 3. Little Jimmy Alvis, 4. Greg Leonard, 5. Steve Heisler, 6. Shane Butler, 7. Casey Hinds.

Feature (30 laps) - 1. Steele, 2. Shane Butler, 3. Hartley, 4. DeCaire, 5. Brazil, 6. Aguilar, 7. Leonard, 8. Teate, 9. Perez. 10. Kempgens, 11. Little Jimmy Alvis, 12. Gimmler, 13. Shotsberger, 14. Mathis, 15. Heisler, 16. Gingras, 17. Nichols, 18. Dakotah Stephens, 19. Rose, 20. Hinds, 21. Stan Butler, 22. Jimmy Alvis. DNS Richard Waddell and Miller.

 

Results of TBARA event at DeSoto Super Speedway, Bradenton, Fla. June 6, 2009

BRADENTON, Fla. - The Tampa Bay Area Racing Association was back in action Saturday night for the first time since mid April and they put on a dazzling display on the high banks of DeSoto Super Speedway. Former series champion Bo Hartley had everything working to perfection this night as he held off David Steele for his first victory of the season in the 30 lap caution free headliner.

Hartley began his run from the seventh slot in the 23 car field as Tommy Nichols hustled to the lead in his No. 55 at the drop of the green flag while those behind him sliced and diced for position. Hartley overhauled Nichols for the top spot on lap 11 but behind him Joey Aguilar, Steele and Troy DeCaire were fighting their way forward.

While Hartley was putting good distance on the field Steele worked past Aguilar for second and began his now familiar rundown of the leader. In the closing laps it looked like Steele might pull off yet another late race victory, but Hartley was up to the challenge and held off Steele for a close victory. Aguilar checkered third ahead of Shane Butler and DeCaire. Heat race wins went to Larry Brazil, Nichols and Aguilar.

The TBARA '09 Tour next races at Five Flags Speedway in Pensacola on Friday, July 10 then travels west to Mobile International Speedway in Irvington, Ala. the following night. It will mark the first time in 25 years that TBARA has visited the high banks of Five Flags and the two lightning quick tracks should provide an exciting show for the Gulf Coast race fans.

Complete Results.

First heat (8 laps) - 1. Larry Brazil, 2. Dude Teate, 3. David Steele, 4. Bo Hartley, 5. Greg Leonard, 6. Wendy Mathis, 7. Bill Pettijohn, 8. Sonny Hartley, 9. Skeeter Faulconer.

Second heat ( 8 laps) - 1. Tommy Nichols, 2. Ben Fritz, 3.Mickey Kempgens, 4. Shane Butler, 5. Dave Shotsberger, 6. Jimmy Alvis, 7. Frank Hurst, 8. Traci DeCaire.

Third heat ( 8 laps) - 1. Joey Aguilar, 2. Troy DeCaire, 3. Dustin Perez, 4. Brad Davis, 5. Steve Heisler, 6. Bobby Rose, 7. Frankie Hurst.

Feature (30 laps) - 1. B. Hartley, 2. Steele, 3. Aguilar, 4. Butler, 5. Troy DeCaire, 6. Teate, 7. Kempgens, 8. Davis, 9. Fritz, 10. Nichols, 11. Leonard, 12. Shotsberger, 13. Brazil, 14. Mathis, 15. Heisler, 16. Perez, 17. Alvis, 18. Traci DeCaire, 19. Pettijohn, 20. Frank Hurst, 21. Rose, 22. Faulconer, 23. Frankie Hurst. DNS - S. Hartley and John Anderson.

 

RESULTS FROM TBARA AT DESOTO SPEEDWAY, BRADENTON, FL 4-11-09

BRADENTON, Fla. - Before the best crowd of the season at DeSoto Super Speedway, TBARA hot shoe David Steele hustled Harold Wertjes potent No. 14 to victory in the 30 lap winged sprint car feature Saturday night for his 61st career victory with the Tampa based club. Dude Teate was the early leader but by lap five Bo Hartley drove to the point to pace the 18 car field on the lightning fast 3/8 mile oval. Steele and point leader Troy DeCaire started mid pack and were slicing and dicing their way toward the front when a yellow flag waved on lap 14 for a spin by Ben Fritz. When racing resumed it was still Hartley setting the pace but he was beginning to feel the heat from Steele, DeCaire and Shane Butler. After some furious battling, Steele was able to work past Hartley for the top spot on lap 24 and he went on to edge Hartley for his fourth victory this season. Hartley claimed runner-up honors ahead of DeCaire, Butler and Joey Aguilar. Kipp Beard, Blaze Martin, Sonny Hartley, Fritz and Wendy Mathis rounded out the top 10 runners. Heat race victories fell to Teate, Mathis and Tommy Nichols.

First Heat (8 laps) - 1. Dude Teate, 2. Sonny Hartley, 3. Shane Butler, 4. Dustin Perez, 5. Dave Shotsberger.

Second heat (8 laps) - 1. Wendy Mathis, 2. Ben Fritz, 3. Kipp Beard, 4. David Steele, 5. Blaze Martin, 6. Brad Davis, 7. Brian Maddox.

Third heat (8 laps) - 1. Tommy Nichols, 2. Mikey Kempgens, 3. Bo Hartley, 4. Troy DeCaire, 5. Jim Alvis, 6. Joey Aguilar.

Feature (30 laps) - 1. Steele, 2. B. Hartley, 3. DeCaire, 4.Butler, 5. Aguilar, 6. Beard, 7. Martin, 8. S. Hartley, 9. Fritz, 10. Mathis, 11. Davis, 12. Perez, 13. Shotsberger, 14. Nichols, 15. Kempgens, 16. Alvis, 17. Teate, 18. Maddox. DNS Dakota Stephens.

 

 

RESULTS FROM TBARA EVENT AT DESOTO SPEEDWAY, BRADENTON, FL 3-21-09

BRADENTON, Fla. - TBARA point leader Troy DeCaire notched his second consecutive victory at DeSoto Super Speedway Saturday night as he copped the 30 lap main event for the winged sprint cars.

Starting 12th in the 25 car field, DeCaire quickly blasted from his outside row starting position using his now familiar three wide passes to move to fifth on the first lap before the yellow waved for a crash by Joey Aguilar. Aguilar was uninjured but his car was finished for the night.

On the restart it was Ben Fritz in his bright red No. 16 on the point with Brad Davis, Sonny Hartley and Kipp Beard in tow. DeCaire once again jumped to the outside on the banked 3/8 oval quickly picking off cars one by one until he motored by Fritz for the lead on lap 10.

With DeCaire comfortably in front, all eyes turned to the black No. 14 of Dave Steele and he sliced and diced his way into the top five and began to close in on the fleet DeCaire. With no further yellow flags to bunch the field, Steele ran out of laps and settled for runner-up money over Shane Butler, Fritz and Beard. Completing the top 10 were Blaze Martin, Bo Hartley, Mickey Kempgens, Dakotah Stephens, and Davis.

The Tampa Bay ground pounders return to DeSoto on Saturday, April 11. A recent schedule change will postpone a visit to South Georgia Motorsports Park from April 25 until August.

First heat ( 8 laps) - 1. Mickey Kempgens, 2. Joey Aguilar, 3. Ben Fritz, 4. Jim Alvis, 5. Dave Shotsberger, 6. Bryan Eckley, 7. Nick Manikis, 8. Ric Voisey. 55 Tommy Nichols DNS and 20 Larry Brazil, Jr. DNS.

Second heat ( 8 laps) - 1. Kipp Beard, 2. Dave Steele, 3. Brad Davis, 4. Dustin Perez, 5. Dakotah Stephens, 6. Bobby Rose, 7. David Slawiak, 8. Bill Pettijohn, 9. Frank Hurst.

Third heat ( 8 laps) - 1. Shane Butler, 2. Troy DeCaire, 3. Sonny Hartley, 4. Dude Teate, 5. Blaze Martin, 6. Bo Hartley, 7. John Gilbert, 8. Frankie Hurst, 9. Brian Maddox.

Feature ( 30 laps) - 1. DeCaire, 2. Steele, 3. Butler, 4. Fritz, 5. Beard, 6. Martin, 7. B. Hartley, 8. Kempgens, 9. Stephens, 10. Davis, 11. S. Hartley, 12. Perez, 13. Shotsberger, 14. Alvis, 15. Gilbert, 16. Slawiak, 17.Eckley, 18. Pettijohn, 19. Voisey, 20. Teate, 21. Maddox, 22. Frankie Hurst, 23. Frank Hurst, 24. Rose, 25. Aguilar. Manikis, Nichols and Brazil, Jr. all DNS.

 

 

RESULTS FROM TAMPA BAY AREA RACING ASSN at DeSoto Super Speedway 2-14-09

BRANDENTON, Fla. - The Dave Steele dominance of early season TBARA events came to a halt Saturday night at DeSoto Super Speedway as defending series champion Troy DeCaire copped the 30 lap feature run on Valentine's Day night.

Steele took he challenge offered by track promoter John Sarppraicone to start shotgun on the 18 car field for a $500. bonus and he wasted no time in heading to the front. On lap six a yellow waved for Wendy Mathis who had a mechanical problem and Steele had already gained 11 positions and his sights were on the leaders. Blaze Martin paced the field over Bo Hartley and Shane Butler, but when the next yellow flew on lap 13 Steele lay fifth in the order.

DeCaire got around Martin for the lead on lap 18 with most eyes on Steele and his steady, methodical move toward the front. A lap 23 restart saw the order DeCaire, Martin, Steele and Butler and it only took two laps for Steele to dispose of Martin and then run down DeCaire's purple mount. The final yellow of the night came on lap 28, so it would be a two lap shootout as Steele aimed for his fourth victory in as many events to kick off the 2009 season. The green waved and Steele's mount failed him on lap 29 as the driveline came apart and DeCaire sped to the victory ahead of Joey Aguilar, Martin, Butler and Mickey Kempgens.

Heat race wins fell to Kempgens, DeCaire and Aguilar.

Feature finish (30 laps) - 1. Troy DeCaire, 2. Joey Aguilar, 3. Blaze Martin, 4. Shane Butler, 5. Mickey Kempgens, 6. Jimmy Alvis, 7. Dakotah Stephens, 8. Dave Shotsberger, 9. Bo Hartley, 10. Dave Steele, 11. Jeff VanDusen, 12. Rocky LoPresto, 13. D.J. Hoelzle, 14. Bill Pettijohn, 15. Brad Davis, 16. Larry Brazil, 17. Tim Buchanan, 18. Wendy Mathis, 19. Dude Teate DNS.

 

 

TBARA Results from Citrus County Speedway, Inverness, FL
INVERNESS, Fla. - The Tampa Bay Area Racing Association kicked off their 2009 season Saturday night at Citrus County Speedway with David Steele topping the 24 car field.

Pole sitter Bo Hartley set the early pace on the 3/8 mile paved oval while Steele who started the 30 lapper from the fifth slot was working his way forward. Steele caught Hartley at the halfway mark and began to apply pressure but Hartley seemed up to the task of keeping Steele at bay. Steele turned up the pressure on Hartley, showed his car's nose a time or two and finally got the break he wanted when Hartley looped his mount to bring out a yellow.

Once in front Steele was not out of the danger as defending series champion Troy DeCaire kept the pressure on to the checkers. Joey Aguilar, D.J. Hoelzle, and Gary Gimmler rounded out the top five finishers. Heat race victories went to DeCaire, Gimmler and Hoelzle while Kipp Beard topped the B Main.

Feature finish (30 laps) - 1. David Steele, 2. Troy DeCaire, 3. Joey Aguilar, 4. D.J. Hoelzle, 5. Gary Gimmler, 6. Dakotah Stephens, 7. Mickey Kempgens, 8. Shane Butler, 9. Larry Brazil, 10. Blaze Martin, 11. Bobby Rose, 12. Perez, 13. Steve Heisler, 14. Kipp Beard, 15. Wendy Mathis, 16. Tommy Nichols, 17. Jim Alvis, 18. Nick Manikis, 19. Bradley, 20. Bo Hartley, 21. Dude Teate, 22. Dave Shotsberger, 23. Buchanan, 24. Mark Gimmler.

 

 

Results from TBARA event at New Smyrna Speedway, Samsula, Fla. 10-4-08

 SAMSULA, Fla. - Once again former TBARA sprint car champion David Steele put his many years of experience to good use to outrun current point leader Troy DeCaire to the checkers in the 30 lap feature event Saturday night at New Smyrna Speedway. Front row starter Bobby Rose jumped to the lead at the drop of the green flag to pace the 15 car field for the first 14 circuits of the very fast half mile oval until a yellow flew for the slowed car of D.J. Hoelzle in turn one. Steele, who had started 10th in the field, had worked his way to second and on the restart quickly dispatched Rose who was driving one of his best races in years. Rose kept his No. 56 entry in second spot just scant feet ahead of DeCaire with the balance of the field in tow. A red flag was thrown on lap 20 as DeCair's mount lost a radiator hose and watered down third turn with the cars of Sonny Hartley and David Retzlaff spinning on the slick surface. DeCair's crew was able to get his mount repaired during the clean up and Hartley was also able to rejoin the field but Retzlaff was finished for the evening. Steele paced the field on the restart over Rose, Larry Brazil and Tommy Nichols as they ran the last 10 laps in quick fashion with DeCaire slicing his way from the rear to earn a runner up finish in the closing laps. Chasing Steel and DeCaire to the flag were Brazil, Rose and Shane Butler. Heat race victories fell to DeCaire and Hoelzle.

- 30 -

First heat (8 laps) - 1. Troy DeCaire, 2. David Steele, 3. Bobby Rose, 4. Sonny Hartley, 5. David Retzlaff, 6. Larry Brazil, 7. Steve Heisler, 8. Ben Fritz.

Second heat (8 laps) - 1. D.J. Hoelzle, 2. Blaze Martin, 3. Shane Butler, 4. Mark Gimmler, 5. Tommy Nichols, 6. Mickey Kempgens, 7. Dakotah Stephens.

Feature (30 laps) - 1. Steele, 2. DeCaire, 3. Brazil, 4. Rose, 5. Butler, 6. Nichols, 7. Kempgens, 8. Gimmler, 9. Heisler, 10. Hartley, 11. Stephens, 12. Retzlaff, 13. Martin, 14. Hoelzle, 15. Fritz.

 

Results of TBARA event at DeSoto Super Speedway, Bradenton, FL 9-27-08

 BRADENTON, Fla. - Current TBARA point leader Troy DeCaire kept his nose clean and had some good luck in the late laps to win Saturday night's 50 lap Frank Riddle Memorial sprint car event at DeSoto Super Speedway. It was a night of yellow flag fever, but the veteran DeCaire, who started 11th in the 25 car field quickly bobbed and weaved through traffic and motored by Brian Maddox for the lead on lap nine. Meanwhile David Steele, who had spun on a restart on lap five, was waging his own battle as he worked his way toward the front. The many yellow flags worked in Steele's favor as it closed up the field and on lap 30 Steele put his number 91 mount in the runner-up spot and set his sights on leader DeCaire. On lap 41 Dude Teate slowed on the track to bring out the final yellow of the night and it put Steele right on DeCaire's rear bumper for the restart. When the green flag flew Steele failed to fire, his car out of fuel. Joey Aguilar took up the chase of DeCaire for the final laps but to no avail as DeCaire captured his fifth victory of the season. Aguilar, Shane Butler, Kipp Beard and David Retzlaff rounded out the top five finishers. Heat race victories fell to Aguilar, John Gilbert III and DeCaire.

First heat (8 laps) - 1. Joey Aguilar, 2. David Steele, 3. Sonny Hartley, 4. Mark Gimmler, 5. John Anderson, 6. Bo Hartley, 7. Billy Riddle, 8. Ben Fritz, 9. D.J. Hoelzle.

Second heat (8 laps) - 1. John Gilbert III, 2. Larry Brazil, 3. Brian Maddox, 4. Shane Butler, 5. Mickey Kempgens, 6. Kipp Beard, 7. Dakotah Stephens, 8. Bill Pettijohn.

Third heat (8 laps) - 1. Troy DeCaire, 2. David Retzlaff, 3. Tommy Nichols, 4. Blaze Martin, 5. Dude Teate, 6. Nick Manakis, 7. Tom Pampard, 8. Bobby Rose DNS.

Feature finish (50 laps) - 1. Troy DeCaire, 2. Joey Aguilar, 3. Shane Butler, 4. Kipp Beard, 5. David Retzlaff, 6. Sonny Hartley, 7. D.J. Hoelzle, 8. John Anderson, 9. Blaze Martin, 10. David Steele, 11. Dude Teate, 12. Brian Maddox, 13. John Gilbert III, 14. Nick Manakis, 15. Mickey Kempgens, 16. Timmy Nichols, 17. Bill Pettijohn, 18. Mark Gimmler, 19. Larry Brazil, 20. Dakotah Stephens, 21.Tom Pampard, 22. Billy Riddle, 23. Ben Fritz, 24. Bo Hartley, 25. Bobby Rose DNS.

 

TBARA Results from Citrus County Speedway, Inverness, Fla. 9-6-08

INVERNESS, Fla. - Former TBARA champion David Steele debuted a brand new car in fine style Saturday night at Citrus County Speedway as he came from dead last in the 22 car field to claim victory in the 30 lap headliner. Veteran Tommy Nichols got the jump on the initial green flag,but a multi- car tangle on the first lap saw several cars dash for the pits for repairs with Bo Hartley and Dude Teate finished for the evening. While there was dicing throughout the field it was Joey Aguilar who challenged Nichols and wrestled the top spot on lap 10. Meanwhile Steele, aboard Lenny Puglio's new mount and an infrequent competitor this season, was slicing his way toward the front and able to take advantage on yellows. Just as Steele ran down Aguilar the latter suffered mechanical woes on lap 19 to put Steele in command. Once in front the versatile Steele never looked back as he sped to his fourth victory of the season with a good drive over Shane Butler, Blaze Martin, Nichols and Troy DeCaire. Nichols, Martin and Brian Gingras scored heat race victories.

First heat (8 laps) - 1. Tommy Nichols, 2. Sonny Hartley, 3. Shane Butler, 4. Mickey Kempgens, 5. Troy DeCaire, 6. Steve Heilser, 7. Ricky Burnett, 8. Ben Fritz.

Second heat (8 laps) - 1. Blaze Martin, 2. Joey Aguilar, 3. Mark Gimmler, 4. Bobby Rose, 5. David Shotsberger, 6. Bill Pettijohn, 7. David Retzlaff.

Third heat (8 laps) - 1. Brian Gingras, 2. Larry Brazil, 3. Bo Hartley, 4. Dakotah Stephens, 5. David Steele, 6. Dude Teate, 7. D.J. Hoelzle, 8. Curtis Sutton.

Feature (30 laps) - 1. Steele, 2. Butler, 3. Martin, 4. Nichols, 5. DeCaire, 6. Brazil, 7. Fritz. 8. Gimmler, 9. Stephens, 10. Kempgens, 11. S. Hartley, 12. Shotsberger, 13. Retzlaff, 14. Heisler, 15. Gingras, 16. Pettijohn, 17. Aguilar, 18. Rose, 19. Burnett, 20. Sutton, 21. B. Hartley, 22. Teate, 23. Hoelzle (DNS).

 

TBARA at New Smyrna Speedway, Samsula, Fla. 8-2-08

 SAMSULA, Fla. - Able to satisfy his need for speed, TBARA point leader Troy DeCaire copped his second 30 lap feature event in as many weeks Saturday night at New Smyrna Speedway. Young Blaze Martin zipped out to an early lead on the fast half-mile oval while DeCarie jumped from the 12 hole and immediately began to pick off his competitors. Martin began passing slower cars on the bottom side rather than around the outside and it slowed his progress as DeCaire kept the wick turned up on his George Rudolph owned Hurricane and was running the youngster down in quick fashion. Bo Hartley had a good run going and was trying to close the gap on DeCaire, but when DeCaire got by Martin for the lead on lap 19 it was game over. DeCaire crossed the strip well in front of Hartley for his fourth victory this season with Shane Butler, Mark Gimmler and Dude Teate rounding out the top five finishers. Heat race victories went to Larry Brazil, Tommy Rose and Martin. The next stop for the exciting TBARA ground pounders is August 23 at DeSoto Super Speedway in Bradenton, Fla. - 30 -

First heat (8 laps) - 1. Larry Barzil, 2. Troy DeCaire, 3. Brian Maddox, 4. Bo Hartley, 5. Steve Heisler, 6. D. J. Hoelzle, 7. Tommy Nichols.

Second heat (8 laps) - 1. Bobby Rose, 2. Mark Gimmler, 3. David Retzlaff, 4. Wendy Mathis, 5. Dakotah Stephens, 6. Nick Manikis, 7. Joey Aguilar.

Third heat (8 laps) - 1. Blaze Martin, 2. Dude Teate, 3. Todd Schmidt, 4. Sonny Hartley, 5. Shane Butler, 6. Brad Davis, 7. Ricky Burnett

Feature (30 laps) - 1. DeCaire, 2. B. Hartley, 3. Butler, 4. Gimmler, 5. Teate, 6. Retzlaff, 7. Maddox, 8. Schmidt, 9. Mathis, 10. Nichols, 11. Stephens, 12. Brazil, 13. Rose, 14. Hoelzle, 15. Hiesler, 16. S. Hartley, 17. Martin, 18. Burnett, 19. Manikis, 20. Aguilar, 21. Davis.

 

Results of TBARA Sprint Car event at DeSoto Super Speedway, Bradenton, Fla.

BRADENTON, Fla. - TBARA point leader Troy DeCaire padded his margin Saturday night at DeSoto Super Speedway as he wheeled George Rudolph's winged sprinter to victory in the 30 lap main event. Starting ninth in the 17 car field, DeCaire began his move toward the front on the very quick three-eighths mile oval as Brian Gingras set the early pace from his front row starting spot. A flat tire ended Gingras' night on lap 12 as Shane Butler put his mount on the point over DeCaire, Mark Gimmler and Joey Aguilar. Veteran Brian Maddox brought out a yellow on lap 14 when his mount's engine expired and when the green waved again DeCaire used a brilliant move to work by Butler for the top spot. Two more quick yellows kept the field closed up tight, but DeCaire was up to the challenge as he continued out front while Butler and Gimmler waged a furious battle for second place, with Gimmler finally working by the youngster in the closing laps to claim the position. At the checkers it was DeCaire with his third victory this season ahead of Gimmler, Butler, Aguilar and Dude Teate. Heat races were won by Aguilar, Gimmler and DeCaire. The TBARA touring pros next move to the very fast half-mile oval at New Smyrna Speedway on Saturday, August 2.

Complete results -

First heat (8 laps) - 1. Joey Aguilar, 2. Brian Maddox, 3. Larry Brazil, 4. Wendy Mathis, 5. John Gilbert III. Tommy Nichols and Ray Bolin DNS.

Second heat (8 laps) - 1. Mark Gimmler, 2. Dude Teate, 3. Jim Alvis, 4. Steve Heisler, 5. Sonny Hartley, 6. Ricky Burnett. Dakotah Stephens DNS.

Third heat (8 laps) - 1. Troy DeCaire, 2. Brian Gingras, 3. Shane Butler, 4. Mickey Kempgens, 5. David Retzlaff. D.J. Hoelzle DNS.

Feature (30 laps) - 1. DeCaire, 2. Gimmler, 3. Butler, 4. Aguilar, 5. Teate, 6. Heisler, 7. Kempgens, 8. Retzlaff, 9. Brazil, 10. Gilbert III, 11. Hartley, 12. Mathis, 13. Burnett, 14. Maddox, 15. Gingras, 16. Alvis, 17. Bolin.

 

TBARA Results from Citrus County Speedway, Inverness, FL 6-28-08

INVERNESS, Fla. - The thunder and lightning in the sky nearby was no match for the ground pounding TBARA sprint cars Saturday night at Citrus County Speedway as veteran Joey Aguilar out ran a 21 car field to score a popular victory in the 30 lap main event. An infrequent competitor this season, Augilar had his Doro Racing 52 working to perfection this night as he started fifth and quickly made his presence known as young Dakotah Stephens easily set the early pace in his Ford powered mount. The yellow waved for a spin by Dude Teate on lap four but it was back to green with Stephens leading Todd Schmidt, Brad Davis and Aguilar as everyone jockeyed for position. With a dozen laps down it was Davis looping his mount to bring out the second yellow of the event. Yellow fever hit again as Mark Gimmler lost the handle and spun on lap 17 to keep the field closed up tight on the 3/8 mile oval. Second running Aguilar continued to track Stephens but on lap 25 the youngster had fuel problems and Aguilar took the top spot and it was an apparent dash to checkers, but with two laps remaining the potent Ford of Michael Smith lost an oil filter and the red flag waved for track clean up. It was all Aguilar on the restart as he hustled to the checkers ahead of Shane Butler, point leader Troy DeCaire, Bo Hartley and Dude Teate.

First heat (8 laps) - Todd Schmidt, Joey Aguilar, Tommy Nichols, Shane Butler, David Retzlaff, Bobby Rose, Curtis Sutton, Bo Hartley.

Second heat (8 laps) - Dakotah Stephens, Larry Brazil, Dude Teate, Wendy Mathis, Mickey Kempgens, Brian Maddox.

Third heat (8 laps) - Brad Davis, Michael Smith, Sonny Hartley, D.J. Hoelzle, Troy DeCaire, Mark Gimmler, Steve Hiesler.

Feature (30 laps) 1. Joey Aguilar, 2. Shane Butler, 3. Troy DeCaire, 4. Bo Hartley, 5. Dude Teate, 6. Larry Brazil, 7. Dakotah Stephens, 8. Todd Schmidt, 9. Mickey Kempgens, 10. Mark Gimmler, 11. Wendy Mathis, 12. Sonny Hartley, 13. David Retzlaff, 14. Steve Hiesler, 15. D.J. Hoelzle, 16. Michael Smith, 17. Brad Davis, 18. Tommy Nichols, 19. Bobby Rose, 20. Curtis Sutton, 21. Brian Maddox.

.

 

REUTIMANN DOMINATES TBARA SPEEDWORLD MAIN

Wayne Reutimann Sr. jumped to an immediate lead from his front row starting position and led flag to flag in the 30 lap TBARA Florida Sprint Car Series event at Orlando Speedworld Friday June 6.

20 cars made the Friday night journey to Orlando for the first of two nights in the weekend doubleheader series at Orlando Speedworld and New Smyrna Speedway. The main event grid found the senior Reutimann on the pole position which enable the veteran driver to take command of the race at the first crossing of the stripe. Although he remained in front through the entire 30 laps, it was not a complete run away as he had to survive three restarts.

With Reutimann in command, D.J. Hoelzle moved from his 6th starting position to second but could not reel in Reutimann. The first yellow was brought out at lap 10 due to the car of Mark Gimmler losing oil. The restart line up showed 2007 TBARA Champion and current points leader Troy DeCaire still bottled up in traffic at 13th position. Hoelzle was unable to capitalize on the restart and Reutimann remained firmly in the lead. The yellow waived again at lap 15 to remove a stalled car from the track. Again Hoelzle charged after Ruetimann but was once again thwarted.

When the yellow waived for the final time on lap 25, DeCaire had finally broken free of traffic and worked his way up to 6th. On the restart with 5 laps to go DeCaire put on a major charge to the front moving to 3rd and challenging Hoelzle for 2nd at the stripe. Rounding out the top five were Steve Heisler and Brian Maddox.

Heat race wins were captured by Hoelzle, Maddox and Dakotah Stephens.

The Main Event Finish:

Reutimann Sr., Hoelzle, DeCaire, Heisler, Maddox, Joey Aguilar, Dude Teate, Larry Brazil Jr., Mickey Kempgins, Dakotah Stephens, Wayne Reutimann Jr., Wendy Mathis, David Retzlaff, Shane Butler, Tommy Nichols, Mark Gimmler, Bobby Rose, Nick Manikiks, Stan Butler, Todd Schmidt

 

DUDE TEATE COMMANDS NEW SMYRNA TBARA FIELD

Dude Teate put on an impressive run to the front from his 11th starting position in the TBARA Florida Sprint Car Series main event at the lightening fast New Smyrna Speedway high banks on Saturday June 7th. Teate was aided by a late race technical problem on Troy DeCaire’s car which gave Teate the lead and win in this second night of the double header weekend at Orlando Speedworld and New Smyrna Speedway.

Wendy Mathis took the early lead from her pole staring position. She was soon overtaken by Shane Butler and Butler went on to build up a sizeable lead. However the distance was not enough as DeCaire was rapidly moving to the front from his 10th starting position. On lap 10 DeCaire passed Butler and began outdistancing the field. Meanwhile, Teate was also on the move to the front.

Butler was firmly in 2nd when engine woes caused him to slow in turn two on lap 21, which brought out the yellow flag and sent Butler to the pits. The lap 21 restart saw DeCaire still in front followed by Mathis and Teate. DeCaire again began building his impressive lead while Mathis and Teate waged a battle for 2nd. Teate eventually overtook Mathis but DeCaire was long gone and it was highly unlikely Teate could reel him in.

On lap 28 the yellow flew again, this time for DeCaire, who with only two laps to go was assured a victory. Unfortunately, an unusual mechanical problem with the right front hub caused the loss of the right front wheel in turns 1 and 2. DeCaire amazingly kept the car off the wall and the damage was limited to the hub and front axle. The event however resulted in DeCaire’s retirement and Teate inherited the lead. It was an easy 2 lap sprint to the finish for Teate compared to his challenging run through traffic in the previous 28 laps. At the stripe behind Teate were Wayne Reutimann Jr., Mathis, Mark Gimmler and Michael Smith for the top five.

Heat race wins went to Smith, DeCaire and Reutimann Jr.

The Main Event Finish:

Teate, Reutimann Jr., Mathis, Gimmler, Smith, David Retzlaff, DJ Hoelzle, Mickey Kempgins, Bobby Rose, Tommy Nichols, DeCaire, Larry Brazil Jr., Butler, Steve Heisler, Joey Aguilar, Dan Statter, Nick Manikiks, Brian Maddox, Wayne Reutimann Sr., Stan Butler

 

 

BRAZIL JR. SWEEPS IN TBARA DESOTO RUN

Larry Brazil Jr. inherited the lead on a lap 18 red flag and was never headed in the 30 TBARA Florida pavement sprint car series contest at Desoto Superspeedway on May 31. Brazil survived a late race charge by David Steele and was able to distance Steele by several car lengths at the checkers.

29 cars signed in to the pits to provide another full field of cars for the night’s event. At the green for the main event, young Dakotah Stephens took advantage of his outside front row starting position to jump out to an early lead in the 30 lap contest. 10 laps into the main Stephens yielded to pressure from Brian Gingras, putting Gingris solidly in the lead. Meanwhile, the trio of Brazil Jr., Steele and Troy Decaire were working their way forward from their mid grid starting positions. On lap 18 the race was red flagged when Jim Alvis took a very hard hit into the turn one wall. Fortunately Alvis escaped the incident unscathed. During the red Gingras’ car was found to have a leaking radiator, sending him to the pits to effect emergency repairs. This relegated Gingras to the rear of the field and gave Brazil Jr. the lead for the restart. Inside of 10 laps to the finish Steele put on a two lap hard press for the lead but Brazil Jr. never yielded and drove home to victory. Following Brazil Jr. to the finish was Steele, Decaire, Dude Teate and DJ Hoelzle.

In heat race action, Brazil Jr. grabbed race number 1, which combined with his main event win, earned him the Steele Performance of the Night sweep award. Heat race 2 went to Mickey Kempgins with heat race 3 going to young Dakotah Stephens in his first heat race win.

 

STEELE TAKES TBARA DESOTO RUN

Dave Steele in the Gary Green 91 charged to the lead mid point in the 30 lap contest at Desoto Superspeedway and was never headed. This is Steele’s third victory in the 2008 season. A full field of 24 cars took the green for the main event with Tommy Nichols jumping out to an early lead. Michael Smith brought out the yellow on lap 5 with a spin in turn one due to a flat right rear. On the restart lap Brian Gingras spun the 66 car on the front stretch bringing the yellow out again. By this time Steele had worked his way to fourth position from his ninth starting spot. Troy DeCaire was also in the hunt having moved from tenth to fifth. When the race resumed Steele continued his charge to the front, eventually passing Nichols at mid point for the lead. Shane Butler and Blaze Martin also turned in impressive performances with Butler crossing the finish in second and Martin coming home fourth. At the finish it was Steele, Butler, DeCaire, Martin and Nichols in the top five. In heat race action, Sonny Hartley picked up his third heat race win in as many runs at Desoto this year. Tommy Nichols and DJ Hoelzle also picked up heat race wins.

Main Event Result Steele, Shane Butler, DeCaire, Martin, Nichols, Hartley, Larry Brazil, Mark Gimmler, Dude Teate, Mickey Kempgins, Joe Ligouri, David Retzlaff, Wendy Mathis, Dakotah Stephens, Steve Darvalies, DJ Hoelzle, Johnny Gilbertson, Steve Heisler, Brian Gingras, Nick Manikis, Jim Alvis, Michael Smith, Ben Fritz, Stan Butler Heat 1 Hartley, Gimmler, Ligouri, Martin, Kempgins, Gilbertson, Mathis, Retzlaff Heat 2 Nichols, Shane Butler, Steele, Fritz, Gingras, Teate, Stephens, Manikis Heat 3 Hoelzle, DeCaire, Brazil, Alvis, Smith, Heisler, Darvalies, Stan Butler

 

TBARA 2008 Driver Points as of April 18, 2008

1 Troy DeCaire 243
2 Dave Steele 220
3 Mark Gimmler 205
4 Dude Teate 198
5 Larry Brazil 193
6 Bo Hartley 180
7 Blaze Martin 176
8 Jimmy Alvis 170
9 Ben Fritz 139
10 Joe Ligouri 129

 

TBARA 2008 SCHEDULE

1. Saturday, February 9, 2008 Citrus County
2. Sunday, February 10 New Smyrna
3. Monday, February 11 New Smyrna
4. Saturday, February 16 DeSoto Speedway

5. Saturday, March 22 DeSoto Speedway

6. Saturday, April 5 Desoto

7. Saturday, May 10 DeSoto
8. Saturday, May 31 DeSoto

9. Friday, June 6 Orlando Speedworld
10. Saturday June 7 New Smyrna
11. Saturday, June 21 DeSoto
12. Saturday, June 28 Citrus Couinty

13. Saturday, July 12 DeSoto

14. Saturday, August 2 New Smyrna

15. Friday, September 5 Orlando Speedworld
16. Saturday, September 6 Citrus County
17. Saturday, September 27 DeSoto

18. Saturday, October 4 New Smyrna
19. Saturday, October 25 DeSoto

20. Saturday, November 8 Citrus County

DECAIRE WINS RAIN SHORTENED DICK FRIEDLEY MEMORIAL

Troy DeCaire worked his way from the 10th starting position to the lead just in time before the rain began to fall bringing an early end to the TBARA Dick Friedley 50 Lap Memorial Race.

31 cars signed into pits to provide a full field of racing for the fans at Desoto Superspeedway. With weather forecast to approach later in the evening, the TBARA and Desoto staff did an excellent job of expediting the events to get the show in.

The evening started off under clear blue skies with a full card of heat race action lining up 10 plus cars in each run. Heat race one went to Sonny Hartley in the DJ Racing 27. In heat race two, Billy Riddle, grandson of legendary Frank Riddle, came home the victor. The third and final heat race of the evening saw Tommy Nichols pilot his own 55 to the win.

Larry J. Brazil Jr. was victorious in the special The Job Site Concrete Dash for Cash. This Dash featured the top six drivers in points that were in attendance. Brazil grabbed the early lead and was never headed in the 6 lap event.

The B Main proved to be the most exciting qualifying race of the night with Dude Teate and Wendy Mathis running side by side for several laps late in the race. Mathis jumped out to an early lead at the green while Teate worked his way forward from a rear starting position. At the half way mark Teate caught Mathis which then produced an excellent battle for the lead spot for the next 4 laps. Teate finally bested Mathis and went on for the win.

In the A Main feature Billy Riddle jumped out to an early lead with Larry J. Brazil Jr. in hot pursuit. Brazil passed Riddle twice but multiple yellows on lap 6 recalled Riddle to the lead. Brazil was finally able to work his way around Riddle for the lead while DeCaire worked his way forward from his 10th starting spot. In typical Desoto fashion, the race was fast and furious with challenges for position occurring throughout the pack, sometimes resulting in three wide racing. On lap 26 with Decaire firmly in the lead, Sonny Hartley and Shane Butler got together in turn 4 bringing out the yellow. While Hartley and Butler’s cars were being sorted the rain began to fall and the race was red flagged. With the volume of rain coming down and a look at the radar it was determined that it would be impossible to restart the race. With 26 laps in the books the race was more than half way over and DeCaire declared the winner.

THE FINISH

DeCaire, Brazil, Steele, Gimmler, Teate, Alvis, Anderson, B. Hartley, Beard, Retzlaff, Martin, Riddle, Smith, S. Hartley, S. Butler, Mathis, Heisler, Ladner, Stan Butler, Cipray, Fritz, MacMillian, Nichols, Slawiak, Maddox, Aguilar