8/22/2004

PATTI PRUITT, BOB HERMAN, AND BILL VERWYS QUENCH THIRST FOR VICTORY ON COCA-COLA DAY AT WCIS

Patti Pruitt of Owego led all 25 laps of the SST Sportsman to win her second race of the 2004 campaign at Wyoming County International Speedway. Pruitt started on the outside pole for the race that did not even complete a lap before the first caution period happened. 

On the first turn of the opening lap, several cars piled up including Tom Wiest, Billy Ray Pruitt, Richard Thomas, and Brian Gleason. Pruitt and Thomas would get the worst of it as both cars plowed into the wall and both had major front end damage. Pruitt's crew was able to get his car repaired and get it back on track during the clean up period. 

When racing resumed Patti Pruitt continued to dominate by a large margin over Jim Love. But the plot would thicken when point leader Ron Williams passed Love for second and began chasing Pruitt down. Patti's husband, Billy Ray, would once again find trouble on lap 11. He was racing with Dick Kluth and Steve West when the brakes on West's car fell apart. He drove into turn three and could not slow the car down, which forced him to run into the back of Kluth. Pruitt was left with nowhere to go except to run into the spun car of Kluth. This time the damage was too much for Pruitt and he would be done for the day. 

For the final 14 laps, Williams followed Pruitt around the track but couldn't catch the fast moving 2 Kwik Chassis. As it turns out, Williams lost the power steering on the DeLange Racing "Evil 1" which made it very difficult to get around the tight 1/3-mile. Pruitt would hang on for her second victory of the year at WCIS. 

The pair of wins gives Pruitt the maximum amount of points for her two best WCIS finishes that count towards the points of the Super Short Track (SST) Sportsman Series. The SST Series points are based on series races, where a driver finishes in their home track standings, as well as their best two finishes at any other SST-sanctioned facility. Pruitt has Tioga Motorsports Park as her registered SST home track where she is second in points. 

In the Street Stocks, Bob Herman won his first ever feature in the WYCO #1. Herman passed Ken Barber on lap seven and then pulled away for the final 18 laps to claim the win. Don Pringle finished third behind Herman and Barber. Fred Siebert finished fourth for the second time this year which is his highest finish. Spencer Speedway regular Steve Malin made his first WCIS start of the year and finished fifth. 

Bill Verwys put double digits in his win column as he recorded his tenth victory of the season in the 4-Cylinder WASPs. The nearly unbeatable Verwys passed Mike Burley on lap five to take the lead for good. Holland Speedway regular and Lancaster Raceway drag racer Brian Porebski finished runner up in his first start at WCIS. Burley, Jim Bryant, and Josh Beardsley completed the top five. 

Next week, August 29, Late Model Madness returns to WCIS for the fourth round of the series. Tommy Reese and Dan Domanowski are only separated by two points for the series points lead with two races to go. The SST Sportsman, Street Stocks, and WASPs will all be on the race card. Racing starts at 2:30. 

We're less than two weeks away from WCIS' Labor Day Party Weekend. The party weekend kicks off with the BSA Speed Country Jamboree at WCIS on Saturday, September 4. It's a full day of country music featuring national recording artists Anita Cochrane and Michael Peterson. The concert begins at 2 PM with live local music. Advance tickets are just $12 and proceeds benefit the Boy Scouts of America Iroquois Trail Council, Letchworth District. On Sunday it's the "Labor Day 75" for the Sunoco Race of Champions Modified Tour. The biggest names in Modified racing will do battle at the Perry Bullring for the final North region event of the RoC tour. Concert tickets can be purchased at WCIS and are good for half-price admission on Sunday's race. 

RESULTS 

SST SPORTSMAN 

Heat Winners - Patti Pruitt, Jim Love 

Feature - PATTI PRUITT, Ron Williams, Jim Love, Tom Wiest, Mike Logsdon, Dick Kluth, Ricky Knapp Jr., Mike VerWiere, Jerry Harding Jr., Steve West, Billy Ray Pruitt, Richard Thomas, and Brian Gleason. DNS: Don Wylie. 

STREET STOCKS 

Heat Winners - Bob Herman, Curtis Prince 

Feature - BOB HERMAN, Ken Barber, Don Pringle, Fred Siebert, Steve Malin, Mike Carney, Wayne Semmel, Curtis Prince, Steve McIlwaine, and Duane Evans. 

4-CYLINDER WASPS 

Heat Winner - Bill Verwys 

Feature - BILL VERWYS, Brian Porebski, Mike Burley, Jim Bryant, Josh Beardsley, and Maynard Bixby. DNS: Dean Faleski. 

Source:  Dave Buchanan/Wyoming County International Speedway PR
Posted:  August 22, 2004