Freedom 76er Modified Pit Notes 9/16/23 –   Ryan Godown Returns to Take his Second Freedom 76er Win at Grandview

Ryan Godown moved into the lead on lap 12 and held off challenges from Doug Manmiller & Rick Laubach to take his second Freedom 76er win.

Frank Cozze then Rich Laubach took the early lead until Ryan Godown passed them on lap 12 to take the lead.  By the halfway point of the race Godown had opened nearly a 4 second lead over 2^nd place Rick Laubach.  On lap 38 the 3^rd caution flew for a tangle with Jeff Strunk and Bobby Gunther Walsh.  On the restart, Godown maintained his lead over Laubach who was able to stay within striking distance until the next restart on lap 44 when Doug Manmiller moved into 2^nd and went side by side with Godown for a few laps, but once Godown got back to the preferred top lane, he was able to separate from Manmiller .    On lap 65 Godown pulled away from the field and took the checkered flag with a comfortable margin of victory of over a second and drove into the Freedom 76er for his second win in the past three years.

Heat race winners for the 73-car modified field were Eddie Strada, Sam Martz Sr, Duane Howard, JoJo Watson, Ryan Godown, and Billy Pauch Jr.

The consolation races were won by Billy Osmon and Jared Umbenhauer.

The Low Down and Dirty cash dash was won by Duane Howard.

The Minuteman 20 B Main feature was won by Bobby Trapper Jr who was able to avoid a nine-car tangle on lap 8 that involved Sammy Martz Jr, Billy Osman, Eric Kormann, Ken Eckert Jr., Adrianna Delliponti, Kyle Smith, Kevin Graver, Jack Butler, Anthony Tramontana, and Logan Watt.

T.P. TRAILER NASCAR MODIFIED FREEDOM 76 FEATURE FINISH (76 laps):

1. RYAN GODOWN, 2. Doug Manmiller, 3. Mike Gular, 4. Rick Laubach, 5. Craig Von Dohren, 6. Duane Howard, 7. Ryan Watt, 8. Brett Kressley, 9. Brandon Grosso, 10. Briggs Danner, 11. Billy Pauch Jr., 12. Louden Reimert, 13. Jordan Watson, 14. Eddie Strada, 15. Jeff Strunk, 16. Corey Cormier, 17. Addison Meitzler, 18. Jimmy Leiby, 19. Paul Mancini, 20. Ryan Krachun, 21. Eric Biehn, 22. Frank Cozze, 23. Joseph Watson, 24. Sam Martz Sr., 25. Kevin Hirthler, 26. John Willman, 27. Bobby Trapper Jr., 28. Nate Brinker, 29. Bobby Gunther-Walsh, 30. Craig Whitmoyer, 31. Tim Buckwalter, 32. Ray Swinehart, 33. Jared Umbenhauer, 34. Jesse Leiby

DID NOT QUALIFY: Brian Hirthler, Kevin Graver Jr., Matt Stangle, Mark Kratz, Billy Osmun III, Corey Renninger, Adrianna Delliponti, Sam Martz Jr., Logan Bauman, Matt Yoder, Chris Gambler, Eric Kormann, Darrin Schuler, Mike Lisowski, Mark Malcolm, Aleia Geisler, Ryan Grim, WB James, Ken Eckert Jr., Kyle Smith, Mike Laise, Nathan Mohr, Jesse Hirthler, Dylan Swinehart, Ron Haring Jr., Lex Shive, Anthony Tramontana, Justin Grim, Bobby Trapper Sr., Chris Esposito, Jack Butler, Joe Funk, Bryan Rhoads, Ryan Beltz, Cale Ross, Kyle Weiss, Nick Rochinski, Logan Watt

SCHAEFFER RACING MINUTEMAN 20: (Top 5 to Freedom 76): BOOBY TRAPPER JR., Paul Mancini, John Willman, Jared Umbenhauer, Jimmy Leiby, Kyle Smith, Jesse Hirthler, Eric Kormann, Cale Ross, Logan Watt, Anthony Tramontana, Ken Eckert Jr., Billy Osmun III, Ray Swinehart, Sam Martz Jr., Adrianna Delliponti, Kevin Graver Jr., Jack Butler, Justin Grim, Ron Haring Jr.

FREEDOM 76ER MODIFIED PIT NOTES – 9/16/23 

Ryan Godown took the Freedom 76er win from his 6^th starting position for his second victory in the past three Freedom 76ers and he did not attend last year.

Ryan was spot on from the moment his rig found a spot in the lower pits on Friday.  He went out and recorded quick time in his first timed hot laps session on Friday night.  On Saturday he found his way into the 2^nd starting position of the 5^th heat which he won by a 5 second margin.  Then came the all-important feature redraw which he could have drawn anywhere from the pole to 28^th starting position.  Ryan drew 6^th and by lap 12 he was in the lead.  Rick Laubach kept the pressure on Godown early and then Doug Manmiller made a run for the lead around lap 46 but once Ryan got back to the top lane on lap 48 it was game over for Manmiller and the rest of the field.

In victory lane Ryan reflected “It’s just the way Grandview is, you don’t know where they are behind you, and you just must run as hard as you can.  On the lap 38 restart, I knew Doug was going to have an advantage on restart with his tire selection against my tires which just didn’t fire as well after a couple of heat cycles.  Manmiller went to the top and I rolled the middle to the top to fend him off.  We got another restart on lap 45 and this time I was able to keep more heat in my tires under caution. I think the previous long green run in the beginning hurt us on the previous restart.  In the final green flag run of 31 laps, I used the top to get around the lapped cars and just had to keep the car straight to the checkered flag. To win this race a second time is surreal, and I never thought I would get two of these wins.” 

Doug Manmiller finished 2^nd from his 12^th starting position.  In victory lane Doug  noted “My crew put a great car under me all year long and again tonight.  We were really close tonight and just needed one more spot.  Hats off to Ryan and his team for a great run.   We just needed a few things to fall differently under green for us to get around him.  These crew guys were with me three years ago when we first went to coils and we are now getting much better on coils.  The track was a great top to bottom for the whole race.”

Back at the trailer Doug stated “The redraw is very important and it has been a while since I have drawn well in a race.  Briggs was in my backup car tonight and both cars were set up pretty close to identical.  It was a great way to finish our season with both cars in the top ten, but we were just one spot short.”

Mike Gular finished 3^rd from his 18^th starting position.  Mike was in 7^th at the halfway point on lap 38 and he made a hard charge at 2^nd place Manmiller only to have contact with a lapped car hold him to a 3^rd place finish.

Mike arrived a bit late on Friday due to a trip to the hospital for a hand injury.  The doctors told him not to race this weekend; but they were not going to make him miss the biggest race of the season at his home track.

In victory lane Mike recalled “Just couldn’t clear guys quick enough to get a shot at the leader.  We had a good car tonight and the redraw was just not good enough.” 

Back at the trailer Mike commented “We drew 8^th for the cash dash so I just used it for a test session.  We drew 18 out of 28 in the feature.  I charged as hard as I could and was aggressive as possible coming to the front.  Ron gave us a great car again tonight.  I needed a couple more yellows and just couldn’t clear traffic quick and clean enough.  Our car was good enough to win tonight if we had a clear track to get forward.  I hit a lap car while racing with Manmiller for second place and that knocked my tow, out and pretty much sealed the deal for us in 3^rd place finish.  I was going for the win.  Grandview is my home track and I want to win here and had a really good car.”   

Rich Laubach finished 3^rd from his 4^th place finish.

Rich noted “We drew 8^th for the heat race and was able to get up to 4^th which got us in the all-important redrew for the feature.  Tara pulled 3^rd for the feature, and we led some laps early in the race.  I got passed for 4^th and it’s OK.  We are not the best car here and we got beat by three good ones.  We have got to get better, and we will.”

“I had an epic battle for the lead with Cozze a few years ago for almost the entire 76er and then Gular passed us both to take the win.  I told Tara I wanted to get past Cooze sooner this year and fortunately I did pass him for the lead on lap 7 this time.”

Craig Von Dohren finished 5^th from his 7^th starting position after getting as high as 3^rd by lap 38 but then fell back to a 5^th place finish.  Craig had a guaranteed starting position in the feature and finished 4^th from his 4^th starting position in the cash dash.

Duane Howard finished 6^th from his 20^th starting position in his return to his old Saturday night home track.  Duane made good on his return to Grandview with a heat race win from the 3^rd starting position and posting a win in the “Cash Dash” from the pole position.

In the cash dash victory lane Duane noted “I wanted to come back to Grandview and have a really good night and this is a good start.  I’ve missed being at Grandview this year.  We have a good car tonight and are going for the win in the 76er.”

Back at the trailer Duane commented “We had a good draw all night until the feature draw when our lucky fingers ran out of luck and drew 20^th.  Our car was really fast tonight and I had really hoped to do something special coming back to Grandview at the 76er.  We had to use our tires up coming through the pack to get to the front.  By the time we got to the front the track was pretty much used up too.  We got strung out and then the last 25 laps the top went away.”

Ryan Watt finished 7^th from his 8^th starting position.  Ryan went from 8^th to 3^rd in his heat race to redraw 8^th for the feature.  Ryan recalled “In the feature we were a little too tight and couldn’t carry any speed in the corners but was able to hold a top ten finish.”

Brett Kressley finished 8^th from his 24^th starting position.  Brett had a busy day with his two other team cars in competition driven by Addison Meitzler and Kevin Graver.  He also collected his 2023 Grandview Modified championship awards at intermission.

Bett reflected “Our car was decent for the freedom race.  I think we were a top five car, just the track leveled out there about halfway and not too much action going on beyond that point.”

“We’ve had all the pieces of the puzzle for a long time with good cars, good equipment and I have always drove aggressively.  But this year, I think the aggressive mix along with a little more calculation was the difference that put us over the top to win our first Grandview points championship this year.”

“I figured with me being a guaranteed starter, I’d give it a whirl and bring a couple extra cars into the equation and see what we could do.  It was only supposed to be one eye open Facebook Saturday morning and then I saw Graver’s misfortune the night before, so I figured I’d let him use our Diamond car.”

Brandon Grasso finished 9^th from his 2^nd starting position.  Brandon recalled “Our practice went well on Friday and boosted our confidence going into Saturday.  We drew 3^rd for our heat race and finished 3^rd . We were a bit tight in the heat, but still made the redraw for the feature where we were able to draw the 2^nd starting position in a redraw with 28 picks.”

“In the feature I felt we had a better car then were we ended up in 9^th place.  On the lap 38 restart we lost a handful of spots from a right rear tire that did not fire so that was very disappointing.  We did make the feature with 73 cars on grounds and finished in the top ten with a straight car in one piece, so we have no complaints.”   

Briggs Danner finished 10^th from his 22^nd starting position.   Briggs raced this season in his sprint cars, but this weekend he made his once-a-year return to modified in the Doug Manmiller’s backup car.

Briggs noted “This was my first time in a modified this year. This is Doug’s backup car which is setup identical to his car that ran 2^nd today.  I can’t thank Doug enough for the opportunity to return to the seat of a modified.  I started out in a modified so coming back to a modified was not that hard especially since Doug’s car is way better than any modified I have ever been in.”

“I drew 5^th in the heat and Doug was 4^th in the same heat.  I finished 3^rd in the heat and made the feature redraw.  We drew the 22^nd starting spot in the feature.  I was very happy with a top ten finished starting back so far in the field and racing against the likes of Pauch Jr., Duane Howard, Brett Kressley and many others who race modified every week.” 

Louden Reimert finished 12^th from his 27^th starting position.  The 2023 Big Diamond Coal Cracker champion drew 27^th of 28 draws for the feature but still posted a +15 run through the field.

Louden noted “Good draw in the heat and we made the feature redraw.  The feature draw was out of my hands as I was the last person to draw and got the last number left.  Our car was good in the feature, and we just ran out of time before the track locked down to the bottom in the end.”

Jimmy Leiby finished 18^th from his 33^rd starting position.  Jimmy took the long road to the feature through the heat, consolation, Minuteman 20 and then driving through the calamity of a nine car wreck in the Minuteman to earn the 33^rd starting position in the feature.

Jimmy stated “Our switch to coils was the best thing I could have done thanks to Ron Seltmann of Fast Four Racing Shocks.  He hooked me up for a good weekend without having any feedback from me on coils and we blew a driveshaft during the last practice session on Friday.  We fixed the driveshaft on Saturday morning and then in hot laps had a horrible vibration and pulled in and changed the transmission between hot laps and heat race.”  

In our heat we went from 11th to 8th which sent us to a consolation where we went from 4th to 3^rd.  That got us into the 17^th position in the Minuteman 20 were they take top five to the back of the feature.  I went into the race just wanting to finish, but then the nine car pile up happen in front of me. I saw from turn 1 and 2 and was able to find a hole and drive through moving from 17^th to a 5^th place finish and holding off Kyle Smith for the final qualifying spot for the 76er feature.”  

“In the feature my goal was to just finish which we did; with a run from 33^rd starting position to 18^th.  We went from the worst draw in the heat to bad luck and then good luck from a wreck which gave me a to run the feature and not to mention getting notes on almost 150 on coils in two days to cap a great weekend for us.”

Paul Mancini finished 19^th from his 30^th starting position.  Paul made his first trip to Grandview a good one qualifying for his first Freedom 76er in a field of 73 cars.

Paul reflected “It started out with my friends stepping up and helping us this weekend since my dad was out of town in South Carolina. In Friday’s practice we weren’t fast at all, but Ryan Godown and his crew helped me get the car dialed in for Grandview.”

In the heat on Saturday, we started 5th, was on the 4th place guy’s bumper but didn’t want to drive dirty and move him so went to Minuteman B main.  From the pole of the Minuteman, we   finished 2^nd which qualified us for the Freedom 76er feature.”

“In the feature I just wanted to get laps and keep the nose clean and in doing so I was able to finish 19^th.  It was my first time ever racing at Grandview and was an absolute blast and I can’t wait for next year.”

Jesse Hirthler had a busy weekend racing in both the 38er and attempting to qualify for his first modified race at his first 76er.

Jesse commented “In the heat I started 4th and was timid on the start and had to let off the gas for one car and that let two other cars to drive past me and then two other cars got by too.  It also didn’t help I was on the top and I needed to get down into the faster bottom lane. I was finally able to get into a rhythm and work my way up to finish 6th from starting 4th and being back as far as 8^th.   Getting 6^th locked me into the Minuteman B main. 

“In the minute man I started 10th and was again timid on the start.  I was able to drive smart and avoid all the wrecks including the big one on lap 12. On lap 12 restart, I was in 6th and all I needed to do was get one more spot to make my first Freedom 76er. The car starting in 3rd went from the bottom of the track to the top of the track and parked it, so then I had to let off the gas and I didn’t want to switch lanes fast and take out cars, so 3 cars went by me and then I passed 1 back. That put me 7th. with 8 laps to go and only needing to pass 2 cars to get in the program. After the mess that happened on the start, I was driving the car harder and harder which was just the opposite of what I needed to do.  I shoved the nose lap after lap, and I finished off my first 76er with 7th in the Minute Man 20 from a 10th starting spot.”

“It was my first time racing a modified and I would say that the mods are a lot faster for sure. You must be up in the wheel and know how to drive it along with good throttle control which is what I’m pretty good with.  Fortunately, I was able to put myself in a position to have a chance to make the field and then some stuff bottled back in my lane which caused me to be behind the 8 ball on them final 8 laps. I would’ve loved to hear my name announced in-front of all the fans and walk the stage for my first 76er, but God didn’t think it was my time to shine and he’s saving it for another time.  The tangle on the backstretch was in-front of me and fortunately I was in the right lane and was one of the first cars through the wreck.”

Grandview will close their 2023 season out with the following Outlaw Racing Series Enduros:

Saturday, September 23 – Outlaw Racing Series Enduro, Outlaw Racing Series Vintage, Xcel 600 Modifieds – 7 pm

Friday, October 13 – Outlaw Racing Series Enduro, Outlaw Racing Series Vintage, Linda’s Speedway Chargers – 7 pm.

Saturday, October 14 – Outlaw Racing Series Enduro, Outlaw Racing Series Vintage, Xcel 600 Modifieds – 5 pm.