Grandview Money Maker Modified Pit Notes

Pole setter Tim Buckwalter led the first 46 laps. After a lap 38 restart Craig Von Dohren methodically moved from 4^th and moved into the lead on lap 47.  In the final 13 laps Von Dohren was able to hold off Jeff Strunk to take the win of the 60 lap Bruce Rogers Memorial.  

The top ten was rounded out by Jeff Strunk in second followed by Doug Manmiller, Jared Umbenhauer, Craig Whitmoyer, Tim Buckwalter, Jorden Henn, Nate Brinker, Bobby Gunther-Walsh, and Brett Kressley in 10^th place.

The heat races were won by Brett Kressley, Ryan Beltz, Bobby Varin in Norm Hansell’s 357 and Brian Hirthler.  The consolation races went to Dylan Swinehart and Brad Brightbill.

BRUCE ROGERS MEMORIAL MONEY MAKER BIG BLOCK/SMALL BLOCK MODIFIED FEATURE FINISH (60 laps):

1. CRAIG VON DOHREN, 2. Jeff Strunk, 3. Doug Manmiller, 4. Jared Umbenhauer, 5. Craig Whitmoyer, 6. Tim Buckwalter,7. Jordan Henn, 8. Nate Brinker, 9. Bobby Gunther-Walsh, 10. Brett Kressley, 11. Bobby Varin, 12. Ryan Krachun, 13. Brian Hirthler, 14. Brad Grim, 15. Jimmy Leiby, 16. Kevin Hirthler, 17. Ryan Beltz, 18. John Willman, 19. Ryan Grim, 20. Duane Howard, 21. Brad Brightbill, 22. Kevin Graver Jr., 23. Steve Swinehart, 24. Ray Swinehart DNS: Dylan Swinehart

Did Not Qualify:

WB James, Kyle Smith, Clay Butler, Mike Laise, Dan Waisempacher, Brad Arnold, Mike Lisowski, Eric Biehn, Kyle Weiss, Darrin Schuler, Doug Snyder, Jesse Leiby, Brett Gilmore, Steve Young, Ron Jaring Jr., Justin Grim, Corey Merkel, Mark Van Vorst, Joel Smith

MODIFIED PIT NOTES –

Craig Von Dohren is batting a thousand in 2022 with 2 outings and 2 wins under his belt already in 2022.  Craig patiently cruised from his 6^th redraw starting position and passed Manmiller, Strunk and Buckwalter on his way to his 7^th opening day win at Grandview with this one being a $10,060 check.

Back at the trailer Craig noted “We had a real good car in the end.  It slicked up a little and I found the bottom before the others did.  The top was good for restarts and Timmy just couldn’t stick like we could.  I was surprised we were able to get past Strunk since the track was a slippery surface which is his style of track.  We have real good stuff and I feel confident this year.  But everyone has the same real good stuff, so it is hard to win, and it comes down to your shocks if you win or lose these days.”

Jeff Strunk’s day started out a bit rough with an 11^th starting position in his 12 lap heat race.  After working his way up to 7^th in 2 laps; Jeff had a contact flat and had to return to the back of the field after pitting for the flat tire.  Strunk was able to overcome the flat and last starting position to finish 3^rd in his heat.  He was able to redraw 2^nd on the grid for the 60 lap feature.

In the feature Jeff and Von Dohren swapped positions a few times during the 60 lap race with Von Dohren finishing with the win and Strunk with a strong 2^nd place finish.   

Postrace Strunk commented “We got the wood laid to us in the heat by a competitor and had to come in and change a flat.  Got in the redraw and picked a real good number for the feature and started P2.  We had a real good race with Craig tonight.  He passed me but I got him back and then he got me back.  The new lights are awesome for both racers and fans alike.  We had a solid run tonight which is a great start to the season for us and much better than our start last year.”

Doug Manmiller finished 3^rd from his 4^th starting position to record his best season opener finish in recent memory.  A strong start to the season is just what Manmiller needs to make a run for the 2022 championship with the points opener right around the corner next week. 

Doug stated “Tonight we ran the same car that got us a 5^th place finish in the points last year.  We are very happy to start this season with a 3^rd in the Moneymaker.  Cody also got off to a great start with a 3^rd in his sportsman car.  Good results, good baseline for the season and no damage is a big plus going into the points opener.”

Jared Umbenhauer has his own new race team for the 2022 season after coming off a career season in 2021 with a 3^rd place finish in Grandview points behind Craig Von Dohren and Brett Kressley.

Umbenhauer picked up right were he left off last year and posted a 4^th place finish from his 9^th starting position with his new team.  Umbenhauer reflected “We weathered some tough track conditions in the heat and moved from 6^th to 4^th and made the redraw.  This was my first race as a car owner and to finish 4^th with the car straight is a great way to start the season.”

Craig Whitmoyer had a solid 5^th place finish from his 16^th starting position.  Craig commented “We were able to pass some cars and some broke in front of us.  Real happy with a 5^th in our first outing on this new car.  The car stayed together tonight and that’s always a plus.”

Tim Buckwalter led for 46 laps only to have Von Dohren find the bottom first and make a pass for the lead on lap 47.  Tim then had a flat on lap 50 and returned to finish 6^th place.

Jordan Henn finished 7^th and was the hard charger of the night from his 22^nd starting position.  The night started with a bad pill draw of 10^th starting position for his heat race.  Jordan still managed to move forward to a 6^th place finish and start up front in his last chance race.  In addition to his best front to back modified run of his career; Jordan drove double duty in the 4R sportsman entry and picked up his 3^rd Sportsman win in row.

Back at the trailer Henn reflected “We had a great run from the on the grand stage of the Bruce Roger’s Money Maker and overcame a bad pill pull.  We have a brand-new shock package and the car worked anywhere I put it.  Confidence is everything and we got some now going into the points opener next week.”

Nate Brinker finished 8^th from his 23^rd, starting position after a challenging night of circumstances and close calls.  The 8^th place finish was a great start for the 14B team but just as important they were able to keep the car straight and avoid any tangles which they encountered far too frequently in 2021.

Nate reflected “Our night started off rough by pulling 47 out of 50 at the heat race pill draw.  We started 11^th in a heat filled with heavy hitters.  We were very happy to go +6 in positions and finish 5^th only one spot out of qualifying which put us in the front of our last chance race.  In consolation I hit the hole in turn 1 and lost several spots; but I was able to stay in 4^th and get the last transfer position into the feature.  We were happy just to qualify for the field and that was our goal for the night.  It was tough starting the feature so far back in 23^rd and we quickly went a lap down but decided to ride it out and see what happens.  It was a good decision as one by one a lot of cars pulled in and we ended up with an 8^th place finish.  It was our first time out with this car, and we had a brand-new never used before setup in the car.  This is a great to start our 2022 season on a strong note.  We are right where we want to be with a baseline, momentum and confidence going into the Grandview points season opener next week.”

Bobby Gunther Walsh finished 9^th from his 15^th starting position and had a solid night from heats to feature.

Bobby noted “We drew the pole for our heat and led about half of the race until Varin in the 357 drove by with ease.  I could see a lot of noses, but they didn’t get by, and we finished 2^nd.  We were very happy to start the night out with a solid run.

Jeff Paulson is my new crew chief and he has done a phenomenal job setting up the car which has been rock solid under me.  He was racing tonight and not here so that made me the crew chief for tonight.  We got lapped early, but I think if I got to the bottom sooner, we would have stayed on the lead lap.  The car was really good tonight and that is all Jeff Paulson and had nothing to do with me.

It was great to start the season out with a good night but extra special to do well on the night in honor of my good friend Bruce Rogers who was always very kind to me.  He was a big imposing guy, but he always encouraged me.  It was an honor to be part of an event in the memory of Bruce Rogers.”

There were a trio of guys with good runs that late flat tires and rear problems knocked them out of a top 10 run.    Brett Kressley and Bobby Varin in Norm Hansell’s 357 had flat tires while Krachun lost a rear placing them 10^th, 11^th, and 12^th respectively after hovering around the top 5 for the first 50 laps.

Usually, the special events double duty ironman is limited to Brian Hirthler. But this year he was joined by Jordan Henn, Jimmy Leiby, Dylan Swinehart and Kyle Smith.  All drivers qualified in both modified and sportsman except Kyle Smith just missed the modified field in the 2^nd alternate position.  Jordan Henn finished 7^th in modified and won the sportsman feature in the 4R.

Jimmy Leiby qualified for the feature in only his 3^rd outing in a modified.  Jimmy reflected “I was super excited just to qualify for the $1,060 to start field not to mention doing it with a 2^nd place finish in my heat and was surprised that no one passed me.  I got lucky in the heat but rather be lucky then good any day.”  Jimmy finished 15^th in his first career modified feature.

WB James made his first Grandview appearance from his home state of Delaware.  The 119 of WB had some strong runs at Bridgeport Speedway in the fall and he continued with a strong run on his first visit to Grandview missing the field by only one position and stated, “I’ll be back.”  76er here we come.   

Dylan Swinehart won his last chance race but started smoking at the checkered and had to be pushed back to the pits.  Dylan had motor damage and was a DNS for the feature.

Next Saturday, April 9 will be the first point race of the brand-new season, part of the NASCAR Advance Auto Parts Weekly Racing Series featuring a double header with the T.P. Trailer Modifieds and T.P. Truck Equipment Sportsman starting at 6 pm. Pit gates open at 2 pm and grandstand gates open at 4 pm. Adult grandstand admission is $18 while children under age 12 are admitted free of charge.