The
2007 Season
Note it starts from the bottom & ends at the
Top
2007 Season
Photos
<Link
Milwaukee
Mini
Mile
October 13
2007 Summer Shootout
by John Wiedemann,
Making their first full appearance in the Summer Shootout, the
Formula Indy Racing Association had a lot to learn about the track.
The division had run a few practice laps at the last Shootout event
only to get rained out. It was clear that the drivers with the setup
to get these hotrods through the turns would be the ones challenging
for the win. John Zeilinga seemed to be able to cruise through the
corners well and won both heat races after starting at the front of
the first and the back of the second. Grant Greenfield was the
closest to challenging Zeilinga led in the closing laps of the
second heat race. A slightly understeering ride and numerous caution
flags proved to be Greenfield’s undoing as Zeilinga was able to
catch and overtake him in the closing laps. Starting on the front
row of the feature Zeilinga and Greenfield took off and were clearly
the class of the field on this day. Zeilinga was able to pull away
and take the feature win. Greenfield followed in second and Vern
Brown claimed third in a borrowed car from Gary Cooper.
FIRA report:
John
Zeilinga Sweeps at The Milwaukee Mini Mile Season Finale
Mother Nature was our biggest fan all year with only one rain out
and she provided outstanding weather for the October Season Finale.
With most other racing divisions done for the year, FIRA was able to
get in a few more late season dates for racing. Practice started
early and the 2 sessions were needed to shake the cars down and make
the adjustments needed for the very flat and fast track. Team
ZEN with John Zeilinga at the controls shocked everyone dropping out
of the first session having broken one of those unbreakable chains
he uses. Repairs were quickly completed and John’s heart was
restarted. Team ZEN needed to start in order to take the
championship from 4 time champion Vern Brown.
There were no time trials but 2 heats and a
feature.
The first heat was set by a draw with the second
totally inverted and the feature set by the average finish.
The first heat had some great competition with
passing all over the track. This new track was interesting as the
sled powered cars had great power out of the corners and the bike
powered cars had fun shifting up and down up to 6 times per lap.
The first heat ended with 58 John Zeilinga up
front followed by the 37 of Grant Greenfield. An incredible third
place finish by Lyle Phillips as he tried to move into fourth in
points. Lyle was followed by the number 1 of Vern Brown and the 44
of Gary Cooper. Next in the field was the 73 of Dale Aikman who
towed all the way from OHIO with his Super Lite car. The cage
mounted wing looked awesome and the 600cc motorcycle was 150cc less
than our allowable but he beat two 750’s. Great drive Dale!
Following Dale was the 17 of Tim Roach, the 48 of Kurt Williams and
the 57 of Rich Kossak.
The second heat was inverted but the results were
similar. Fast and Fun racing! There was great racing between the
first 4 finishers led by Jon Zeilinga and followed by Greenfield,
Cooper and Phillips. Cooper was impressive wheeling the 44 to a
third place followed by Phillips. Another tight race was between the
48 of Williams and the 73 of Aikman. Kossak pulled off with the
tranny stuck in neutral, Brown had the repair to the output shaft
fail again and was done for the night and Roach had a chain fail.
The feature was typical of the great club. Cooper
offered his ride up to Vern Brown having secured his third place in
points and wanted to see what his car could do in the hands of 4
time champion Brown. Brown helped Roach fix his chain issue but the
problem was more involved and he would choose to go tail for the
feature. I didn’t see the action in the Kossak pits but all members
were helping each other..
The feature start was crazy going into the
very tight hairpin turn #1 and nobody was giving an inch. Light
contact forced the 73 ride of Ohio Aikman to retire. The Red flag
flew as Williams was hung up in the dirt but was able to continue.
With the race restarted, Zeilinga was off to the front followed by
Greenfield who was his only competition today. John cruised to a win
in the 20 lap feature followed by Greenfield, Brown, Phillips,
Williams, Kossak, Roach and Aikman.
A great day of racing
See you all at the banquet at Ho Chunk on
November 3rd
Tim Roach #17 FIRA Secretary.
|
Reports and box scores are NOT official until recorded by the Treasurer or
Secretary. |
| P= |
Heat 1 |
Heat 2 |
P= |
Feature |
| 1 |
John Zeilinga |
John Zeilinga |
1 |
John Zeilinga |
| 2 |
Grant Greenfield |
Grant Greenfield |
2 |
Grant Greenfield |
| 3 |
Lyle Phillips |
Gary Cooper |
3 |
Vern Brown |
| 4 |
Vern Brown |
Lyle Phillips |
4 |
Lyle Phillips |
| 5 |
Gary Cooper |
Kurt
Williams |
5 |
Kurt
Williams |
| 6 |
Dale Aikman |
Dale Aikman |
6 |
Rich Kossak |
| 7 |
Tim Roach |
Rich Kossak |
7 |
Tim Roach |
| 8 |
Kurt Williams |
Vern Brown |
8 |
Dale Aikman |
| 9 |
Rich Kossak |
Tim Roach |
9 |
0(Note
# 44 ran as # 1) |
Dells Raceway Park
September 29
Dells report via John Z:
DRP website N/A at this time.10/11/07
Gillentine flies to win, closes in on title
Entering the Small Car Nationals, Neal Gillentine had a firm
grip on the 2007 F.I.R.A. championship trophy, with
perennial champion Vern Brown needing a big points day to
have any chance at keeping the No. 1 for 2008.
Things did not start right for Brown, as only
five cars checked into the DRP pits. Being a mid-season
schedule addition, other series regulars already had other
commitments and could not attend the Dells’ event.
Things soon got worst for Brown, as leading
Gillentine out of turn two on the last lap of the Heat,
Brown’s tranny let go and he quickly saw the field fly by
down the Dells’ backstretch and to the checkers with
Gillentine crossing first.
With his transmission ills terminal, Brown’s day
looked to be over, until long-time competitor Tim Roach
offered to let Brown run the Feature in his car.
Brown would finish second to Gillentine, but he
never really offered any serious threat to Gillentine and
the No. 58. Capable of 100 m.p.h. plus, Gillentine wasted no
time in screaming to the front and the victory.
“I wished today, we
would have run more as a pack. This division normally does,
but today we had some issues. As far as our championship, we
have one more run to go. We will run that like it is the
last one,” said six-time 2007 winner, Gillentine from
Victory Lane.
|
FIRA report:
Neal Gillentine sweeps at Dells Raceway Park
It was a beautiful
day to race and an unusual daytime program for the 5 cars who
ventured to the Dells Raceway Park. The new owners made some very
noticeable improvements to the track and the program went off
flawlessly.
Time trials were fast with Neal
Gillentine in the 58 looking for a track record. Neal came up just
short at 13.308 which is as quick as the super late models that run
at the Dells. Neal was followed by Vern Brown #1 at 13.874, Lyle
Phillips #35 at 14.241, Tim Roach #17 at 14.510 and Gary Cooper #44
at 15.163. A special note for qualifying had Lyle Phillips a full
second and a half faster than his last qualification at the Dells
and he beat me for a dollar bet on who would be quickest finally!
A total inversion of the time trials
had Cooper on the pole. The 17 of Roach was able to jump out front
on the start and hold the lead for a short time. The 58 and 1 cars
of Brown and Gillentine were duelling back in the pack. The 58 was
able to pull away as Brown had an uncharacteristic transmission
failure and was forced to retire. The 58 took the lead from Roach
followed by Cooper and Phillips.
With Brown’s car in the trailer, Tim
Roach offered his car to Brown so that the points title would go
down to the final race of the season. The 58 proved to be too fast
as he was the class of the field. Vern Brown was able to take second
in a car that was ill handling and new to him. Cooper took third
followed by Phillips.
Special Notes
The grandmother of Driver Lyle
Phillips wife Melissa was the honorary flagman and threw the green
for Lyle who was on the pole.
Lyle’s spin and go move at the start
finish line had the crowd applauding, Great save.
I personally would like to thank Vern
for running the car as it should be run. I was able to see what I
need to do to make it run better.
See everyone at Milwaukee
Tim Roach #17 FIRA Secretary
|
Reports and box scores are NOT official until recorded by the Treasurer or
Secretary. |
| P= |
Time Trials |
Time |
Heat |
P= |
Feature |
| 1 |
|
13.308 |
Neal Gillentine |
1 |
|
| 2 |
Vern Brown |
13.874 |
Tim Roach |
2 |
Vern Brown |
| 3 |
Lyle Phillips |
14.241 |
Gary Cooper |
3 |
Gary Cooper |
| 4 |
Tim Roach |
14.510 |
Lyle Phillips |
4 |
Lyle Phillips |
| 5 |
Gary Cooper |
15.163 |
Vern Brown
DNF |
5 |
(Note # 17 ran as # 1) |
Madison International Speedway
September 22
FIRA report:
12
Divisions at Madison Fall Classic
A beautiful day for racing at Madison for the Fall Classic but the
rain out from the previous night made for a very busy night of racing
with 12, yes 12 divisions on hand. The pits were packed and some
divisions were forced to pit outside due to the swamp down below being
too wet. With the pits opening at 10 am and practice at noon, we had 3
full practice sessions. We spent more time on the half mile during
practice than on track at other venues. That was fun!!!. 2 lap time
trails had Neal Gillentine out front with an incredibly fast time of
18.633 seconds for the big half mile. The rest of the field timed in
as Greenfield, Brown, Roach, Cooper and Phillips. President Reitz made
the haul up but had an electrical gremlin had him parked for the
night.
In the 12 lap feature, Gary Cooper in
the 44 led the field to the green with Tim Roach on the outside pole.
As the green flag flew it was Roach first to turn one but the 37 of
Grant Greenfield made a bold move passing 2 cars low on the straight
and getting the nose on the low line. The GSXR 750 powered Predator of
Greenfield completed the pass and led down the back straight. The 58
of Neal Gillentine and the 1 of Vern Brown were held up briefly but
made their way to the front in a couple of laps. It was incredible to
watch the three cars do battle for the lead and I hope the on board
camera caught the action. The 58 eventually was able to get past the
37 for the lead and pulled out a couple of lengths. The 37 and 1 cars
battled nose to tail but Greenfield in the 37 prevailed. The feature
finished with Gillentine in front followed by Greenfield, Brown,
Roach, Phillips and Cooper.
Some special notes for the night.
Greenfield was quite impressive
hauling in to the track in a Nascar style diesel rig hauler. Being in
the paved area of the pits, he drew crowds all night to look at the
car which was as usual, impeccably prepared.
The 58 of team ZEN with Neal
Gillentine in the cock pit had a GPS unit on board and recorded a
maximum speed of 100 mph.
The 17 of Tim Roach had an on board
camera for the time trials and feature and I hope to post it to the
web as soon as it is edited.
Jim Bass was again in the pits and
continues to improve from injuries. And finally, Grant Greenfield
turned 21 at midnight and we shared a cold adult beverage. Ask him
about the most mamorable autograph he signed.
Next up is the Dells. Check the schedule
for the early start time
Tim Roach FIRA Secretary #17
|
Reports and box scores are NOT official until recorded by the Treasurer or
Secretary. |
| P= |
Time Trials |
Time |
Heat |
P= |
Feature |
| 1 |
|
18.633 |
N/A |
1 |
|
| 2 |
Grant Greenfield |
19.137 |
N/A |
2 |
Grant Greenfield |
| 3 |
Vern Brown |
19.263 |
N/A |
3 |
Vern Brown |
| 4 |
Tim Roach |
20.248 |
N/A |
4 |
Tim Roach |
| 5 |
Gary Cooper |
20.302 |
N/A |
5 |
Lyle Phillips |
| 6 |
Lyle Phillips |
22.563 |
N/A |
6 |
Gary Cooper |
Grundy County Speedway
September 16
FIRA report
Vern Brown closes in on Team ZEN
The pits were packed for the Fifth Annual Bob Corson Memorial with 5
divisions ready to race. 8 FIRA cars took to the track for practice
and most found the track very loose and slick. Afternoon racing is
rare and the heat and track temperature caused most racers to make
adjustments. My car built 3 pounds of air just sitting in the sun.
Time trials were incredible with Neal Guillentine in
the 58 posting a very fast 15.305 second lap, just shy of his previous
15.274 best. Vern Brown was second followed by the 8 of Wally Reitz
finally back in the car after a brief illness. Tim Roach was fourth
followed by Rich Kossak, Lyle Phillips, Gary Cooper and Rich Breske. A
special note that both rookies Kossak and Breske took off over a
second from their previous races time trial. Great work!!!!!
With the heat a total invert except for the 43 of
Breske who chose to go tail due to a wounded cylinder, there was
plenty of action. Early leader Kossak raced side by side with Roach.
The hard charging 58 of Gillentine was boxed in and could not get to
the front. An early spin and caution brought the field back together
with rookie Kossak in the lead. Brown and Gillentine were too fast and
made the way around both. The second caution of the heat came when
points leader Gillentine blew up the engine. Brown made the most of
the double points night and finished first, Roach second and Lyle
Phillips third. Fourth to sixth were strong finishes by Kossak, Cooper
and Breske. The 8 of Wally Reitz pulled of early but was not done for
the night and the 58 was a DNF with a motor that puked.
Then it got interesting. Team ZEN became the Illinois
Gang for the night. Wally Reitz in the 8 helped out by lending the 8
Ball to Neal for the feature so that he could try to hold onto the
points lead. An invert of 2, with the 8 scratched and the 58 (8)
starting tail due to a car change, 7 cars took the green for the 15
lap feature. Vern Brown was out to gain as many points possible and
took the lead on the green with the 17 of Roach in second. The 58 (8)
was coming fast but drove over the front wing of the 57 of Kossak
bringing out the caution as the track workers picked up the debris.
The parts of the wing took out Rich’s chain and he was done for the
night. There was tight racing on the restart with Roach holding off
Gillentine for a couple of laps but Neal got by. Roach returned to
second as Neal pushed in 2 but Neal regained the second position as
Roach got loose and the 58 went low for the final pass. There was a
good battle further back the 35 of Phillips, the 44 of Cooper and the
43 of Breske. The feature ended with Brown taking the top spot
followed by Gillentine, Roach, Phillips, Cooper, Breske and Kossak.
Next up is the half mile of Madison See you there.
Tim Roach
FIRA Secretary #17
|
Reports and box scores are NOT official until recorded by the Treasurer or
Secretary. |
| P= |
Time Trials |
Time |
Heat |
P= |
Feature |
| 1 |
|
15.305 |
Vern Brown |
1 |
Vern Brown |
| 2 |
Vern Brown |
16.257 |
Tim Roach |
2 |
Neal Gillentine |
| 3 |
Wally Reitz |
17.064 |
Lyle Phillips |
3 |
Tim Roach |
| 4 |
Tim Roach |
17.085 |
Rich Kossak |
4 |
Lyle Phillips |
| 5 |
Rich Kossak |
17.225 |
Gary Cooper |
5 |
Gary Cooper |
| 6 |
Lyle Phillips |
17.619 |
Rich Breske |
6 |
Rich Breske |
| 7 |
Gary Cooper |
18.149 |
Wally Reitz
DNF |
7 |
Rich Kossak DNF |
| 8 |
Rich Breske |
19.303 |
Neal Gillentine
DNF |
8 |
(Note # 8 ran as # 58) |
Columbus 151 Speedway
August 31
FIRA report
The final race of the year at Columbus tightened up the points
race. Time trials had the 37 of Grant Greenfield out front with a 13.1
second lap followed by the 1 of Vern Brown and John Zeilinga.
Incredibly fast times for a track that was very slick. With the sun
down and the track tightening up the heat was exciting from the start,
3 and 4 wide. The 37, 1 and 58 all wanted to get out front but it was
Vern Brown edging out Greenfield for the win followed by Zeilinga, Tim
Roach, Lyle Phillips, Gary Cooper and Rich Kossak.
The feature was set with the winner of the last race
and points leader John Zeilinga starting tail but he need to get up
front to maintain the points lead. The 1 of Brown and 37 of Greenfield
started on the front row and raced side by side for the first few
laps trailed by the 17 of Roach. The 58 was able to work through
traffic and take the third position but was unable to catch the 37 and
1 cars. At the finish, it was the 37 of Grant Greenfield just ahead of
Brown, Zeilinga, Roach, Phillips and
Cooper.
Greenfield’s large group of family and friends
were treated to some awesome donuts in the front straight as Grant
celebrated the victory. The only one upset was the crew chief as he
saw the brand new rear tires smoking as the crowd cheered.
Points to be updated soon but it looks like Brown
cut the lead by 13 points and Zeilinga now leads by 66 going into the
double points race at Grundy in 2 weeks. Greenfield gained ground on
Cooper and is closing in on third in points. Next up Grundy County
September 16
Tim Roach, FIRA 17, FIRA Secretary
|
Reports and box scores are NOT official until recorded by the Treasurer or
Secretary. |
| P= |
Time Trials |
Time |
Heat |
P= |
Feature |
| 1 |
Grant Greenfield |
13.193 |
Vern Brown |
1 |
Grant Greenfield |
| 2 |
Vern Brown |
13.252 |
Grant Greenfield |
2 |
Vern Brown |
| 3 |
John Zeilinga |
13.280 |
John Zeilinga |
3 |
John Zeilinga |
| 4 |
Tim Roach |
14.067 |
Tim Roach |
4 |
Tim Roach |
| 5 |
Lyle Phillips |
14.188 |
Lyle Phillips |
5 |
Lyle Phillips |
| 6 |
Gary Cooper |
14.719 |
Gary Cooper |
6 |
Gary Cooper |
| 7 |
Rich Kossak |
14.773 |
Rich Kossak |
7 |
|
Milwaukee "Mini"
Mile
August 18
FIRA report
MOTHER NATURE WINS AT MILWAUKEE
FIRA’s first appearance at the Summer Shootout was not a total
washout. With 7 cars in the pits for this non-points event everyone
was ready to experience this new track. We were able to get 2 practice
sessions in before the rains came and washed out the event. From this
driver’s seat, I was schooled by the track in many different areas. I
was amazed at how quickly the corners come up and how much feel for
the brakes you needed. The cars with bike motors were going up and
down through 2 and sometimes 3 gears. The sled powered cars seemed
very smooth and if they ran out of gear, I did not see it. I have a
list of changes I will be making should we return to the Mini Mile at
State Fair
From the people that came with me that were in the
front stretch, they said there was a lot of interest and excitement as
we took the track.
The group running the event, which included FIRA member
Dick Heath, ran a great show and should be commended.
Our thanks to everyone who participated
and in particular
to Ray George and Dick Heath
who's efforts
resulted in our inclusion in the Summer Shootout.
Only a couple of casualties from the day. The 43 owned
by Pat Kevin and driven by Rich Breske nosed into the tires at the end
of the back straight and retired for the day. 3 laps later I made a
mistake in the same area and braked too late but I got lucky and was
able to go to the off road to the pits.
The 1 car of Vern Brown had a bent axle that may have
been the result of the close racing last week at Rockford. I am sure
he will have it repaired for the next event in 2 weeks, August 31 at
Columbus.
Tim Roach FIRA Secretary
Rockford Speedway
August 11
Rockford Report by Kevin Ramsell
< link
Neal
Gillentine won an exciting FIRA Mini-Indy Feature.
Vern Brown jumped to the lead in the 12-lap feature event. Gillentine
used his patience as he stalked Brown throughout the race.
With two laps to go, Gillentine got on the inside of Brown going into
turn one. The two put on a great side-by-side battle going down the
backstretch. As the two came to the white flag, it was Gillentine out
front.
At the checkers, it was Gillentine with the win with Brown in second.
Tim Roach came home third and Grant Greenfield was fourth.
FIRA report
TEAM ZEN WINS AT THE ROCKFORD SPRINTS
On
a blazing hot night, Team Zen #58 with Neal Gillentine behind the
wheel pulled off the double winning the heat and feature.
The 6 lap heat sprint start was inverted by points
putting the points leading 58 in the rear with second place Vern Brown
just ahead. Both cars wanted to get to the front fast. On the start
the 17 of Tim Roach took the lead but he had a mirror full of the
green flames from the 37 of Grant Greenfield. It sure is fun being out
front for a while. Roach held the lead for 4 laps but the 58 and the 1
were on the move. Neal went low on the straight to get by a couple of
cars and made it stick low in the corner, the car was really hooked.
Brown was held up a bit and settled in for a tight battle with the
37. The 58 made the pass on the 17 low in 3 and 4 and pulled away for
the heat win. Roach was second followed by Brown, Greenfield,
Phillips, Cooper and Breske.
The feature rolled off with 3 positions inverted
putting the two cars battling for the points lead up front. Last race
winner Greenfield started tail and was on his way to the front as
well. On the start it was 3 wide down the straight and Vern Brown out
to an early lead with the 58 right on his tail. The 17 followed the 58
to the front and third position and the 37 was coming fast. The 44 of
Gary Cooper, the 35 of Lyle Phillips and the 43 of Rich Breske were in
a tight group and provided some awesome racing action. Brown and
Gillentine dueled side by side and put on a great race for the fans.
On lap 10 of the 12 lap sprint, Neal threw the car in low and took the
lead for good. Neal was followed by Brown, Roach, Greenfield, Cooper,
Phillips and Breske.
3 special notes for the nights racing. Late in the
feature race, Cooper and Phillips were having a great side by side
race but the leaders were coming fast. Both racers were aware of where
the leaders were and held a single line so as not to deprive the fans
of a spectacular finish.
The 43 of Rich Breske had his rookie ribbons removed.
Congratulations!!!!!! Lyle Phillips did a Danny Sullivan spin and win
move. 360 spin, no caution and came back to pick up 2 spots.
Tim Roach, FIRA 17, FIRA Secretary
|
Reports and box scores are NOT official until recorded by the Treasurer or
Secretary. |
| |
N/A |
P= |
Heat |
P= |
Feature |
| |
? |
1 |
Neal Gillentine |
1 |
Neal Gillentine |
| |
? |
2 |
Tim Roach |
2 |
Vern Brown |
| |
? |
3 |
Vern Brown |
3 |
Tim Roach |
| |
? |
4 |
Grant Greenfield |
4 |
Grant Greenfield |
| |
? |
5 |
Lyle Phillips |
5 |
Gary Cooper |
| |
? |
6 |
Gary Cooper |
6 |
Lyle Phillips |
| |
? |
7 |
Rich
Breske |
7 |
Rich
Breske |
Columbus 151 Speedway
August 3
FIRA report
3
Different Winners at Columbus!!!!!!!
Practice started early due to the International
Division from Jefferson and FIRA added to the schedule. Interstate
traffic made a couple of drivers late for the practice session but it
was a decent showing with 7 cars in the pits. Hot temps made the track
slick but it did not slow the times much. John Zeilinga posted a fast
time of 13.154 seconds but the top three qualifiers were within 1/10th
of a second. Zeilinga was followed by Brown, Greenfield, Roach,
Phillips, Cooper and Breske.
The night included pictures of each division in Victory
Circle which let the track cool a bit and made the heat exciting.
Roach threw a chain in the warm up laps which could have been a major
incident if it happened during racing. With the 17 forced to watch
from the infield, the racing was in two separate groups. Brown Green
and Zeilinga ran nose to tale and it could have been anybody’s race to
win. Brown held off the hard charging 37 of Grant Greenfield and he
was followed by the 58 of John Zeilinga. The racing was also exciting
further back with the 35 of Phillips finishing a strong 4th
followed by Cooper and Breske.
In the feature the 17 was able to make repairs and
start outside pole but made sure not to make the same mistake and get
on the power too hard at the start. Roach was the early leader but
Greenfield and Brown were quick to go to the front. The 58 of Zeilinga
started in the back due to his win in Madison also was moving to
contend for the win. The best move of the race was not on the track
but in the pits. A late adjustment to the 37 of Greenfield as the
drivers were strapping in was just enough to keep him ahead of Brown
and Zeilinga for the win. I would tell you what the change was but I
may want to use the same change myself at another race. The 17 was
able to hold off the 35 of Phillips followed by the 44 of Cooper who
made a gear change but still struggled to get the rpm’s out of his
sled motor. Rookie Rich Breske was strong as well. The Breske car
seems to have been able to solve the loose condition and ran
consistent lines all night, great work.
Another great night of racing See you Saturday at
Rockford.
Tim Roach, FIRA 17, FIRA Secretary
|
Reports and box scores are NOT official until recorded by the Treasurer or
Secretary. |
| P= |
Time Trials |
Time |
Heat |
P= |
Feature |
| 1 |
John Zeilinga |
13.154 |
Vern Brown |
1 |
Grant Greenfield |
| 2 |
Vern Brown |
13.202 |
Grant Greenfield |
2 |
Vern Brown |
| 3 |
Grant Greenfield |
13.240 |
John Zeilinga |
3 |
John Zeilinga |
| 4 |
Tim Roach |
13.835 |
Lyle Phillips |
4 |
Tim Roach |
| 5 |
Lyle Phillips |
14.181 |
Gary Cooper |
5 |
Lyle Phillips |
| 6 |
Gary Cooper |
14.417 |
Rich
Breske |
6 |
Gary Cooper |
| 7 |
Rich
Breske |
15489 |
Tim Roach |
7 |
Rich
Breske |
Madison International Speedway
July 28
FIRA report
UNBELIEVABLE!!!!!!
What a great night for racing. FIRA’s first ever visit to
Madison International Speedway was a huge success thanks to Madison
International Speedway General Manager Dave Grueneberg. FIRA was
scheduled to run the quarter mile track but during the early practice
session, it was obvious that the FIRA cars would be just too much for
the tight confines of the small track. Dave called a meeting of all
drivers and it was decided we would run the big half mile. FIRA cars
have run on other half mile tracks and everyone had the spare gears to
make it work. What a great club we have with everyone helping out to
make the changes to go to the bigger track and to make repairs for
those that broke.
That decision by Madison made the racing great.
Time trial times were not available but our fans in the
stands told me they were in the low 18 second range. Everyone I talked
to indicated they could have been quicker but for the first time on
this track, I’d say we were pretty good out of the box. Faster than
the limited lates and a hair slower than the super lates that
regularly run at Madison. Just wait until we nail the setup.
Fast time was set by Neal Gillentine followed by Brown,
Greenfield, Phillips, Cooper, McNulty, Kossak, Kevin and Roach with no
time recorded due to a fuel injection wiring failure.
The nights racing was run by USAC so the heat and feature
were set by their rules of inversion. With the 6 lap heat inverted
from time trials except for the 17 of Roach being placed tail due to
no time trial time, it was incredible to see the 58 and 1 go from the
back row to the front. There was incredible racing throughout the pack
and the heat ended with Neal in the 58 out front of the 1 of Vern
Brown. Kai McNulty who is running a part time schedule had an
impressive run finishing third followed very closely by the 37 of
Greenfield, the 17 of Roach and the 35 Phillips. The rest of the heat
was the 57 of Kossak, the 43 of Kevin and the 44 of Cooper.
The feature started with the inversion of the heat race once
again forcing the fast cars to make their way through the field. An
incredible start by all drivers was exciting with cars four wide on
the smooth wide Madison track. Vern Brown was out front by three cars
but a late caution re-grouped the field with 3 to go. On the re-start,
Neal dove in low on Vern and was able to make it stick without contact
to take the lead he would never give up. Brown, having made a gear
change in between the heat and the feature was second by a fraction.
The 37 of Greenfield also made a gear change and was a strong third.
The 17 of Roach and the 14 of McNulty had a great race with Roach
making a late pass to finish fourth. McNulty was Fifth followed by
strong rookie runs of 57 Kossak and 43 Kevin. The 44 of Cooper had a
chain issue and the 35 of Phillips had a track bar failure. Both ran
very strong during the night.
I personally want to thanks all the members for coming
together and putting on a great show for the fans. I thought this was
the best race night of the year. I also want to thank the great people
at Madison International for having us and hopefully we can return in
the near future.
Other special notes.
Thanks to Doug Farrell, treasurer, for making the trip
to Madison even though the blown motor in his car kept him from
racing.
Good to hear Jim Bass, recuperating at home, working with
Vern on the phone figuring out how to get a different style hub to
work on his car after he had a bearing failure.
It should be a crime to have this much fun!!!!!!!!!
See you at Columbus Tim Roach
|
Reports and box scores are NOT official until recorded by the Treasurer or
Secretary. |
| P= |
Time Trials |
Time |
Heat |
P= |
Feature |
| 1 |
Neal Gillentine |
18.185 |
Neal Gillentine |
1 |
Neal Gillentine |
| 2 |
Vern Brown |
18.997 |
Vern Brown |
2 |
Vern Brown |
| 3 |
Grant Greenfield |
20.345 |
Kai McNulty |
3 |
Grant Greenfield |
| 4 |
Lyle Phillips |
20.611 |
Grant Greenfield |
4 |
Tim Roach |
| 5 |
Gary Cooper |
20.718 |
Tim Roach |
5 |
Kai McNulty |
| 6 |
Kai McNulty |
20.989 |
Lyle Phillips |
6 |
Rich Kossak |
| 7 |
Rich Kossak |
21.610 |
Rich Kossak |
7 |
Pat Kevin |
| 8 |
Pat Kevin |
22.589 |
Pat Kevin |
8 |
Gary Cooper |
| 9 |
Tim Roach
DNQ |
- |
Gary Cooper DNF |
9 |
0 Lyle
Phillips DNF |
Grundy County Speedway
July 15
FIRA report
TEAM
ZEN SWEEPS GRUNDY (almost)
With only one night off between races FIRA returned to the Grundy
County Speedway for their third race of the year there.
Neil Gillentine set fast time of the night in ALL divisions, not only
FIRA. Neil was looking to set a new track record but a delay in
getting the timing system up and running caused him to take numerous
extra laps and he built up too much heat in the motor. After pulling
to the pits and the back of the time trials line, he hoped it would
cool enough to set a new personal best.
Neil posted an incredibly fast time of 15.274 seconds on a very
slick dusty track.
The
four lap trophy dash was the only race that Team Zen did not sweep.
With a
tight four cars, nobody wanted to go three wide and Lyle Phillips was
the winner, his first of the season. Great close, clean racing.
Both the heat and features were all Gillentine although there was
close racing all over.
The
heat ended with Gillentine up front, followed by Roach, Phillips,
Cooper, Kossack, Brown and Breske.
The feature had Roach and Gillentine return bumps to each other as the
racing was close. No major damage. Kossack ran an incredibly strong
race for a rookie only to have an engine issue force him to the
infield with a couple of laps left. Reigning champ Brown was hoping to
pull off 2 wins in the weekend but after the win at Columbus, engine
issues slowed Vern as well. Limited to 8000rpm, he was frustrated.
Both drivers will for sure sort out those issues and be ready for the
next race.
Next race is July 28 at Madison International
This will be the first time for FIRA at Madison this year and we will
race on the quarter mile track
Click on the link to the website for directions
Also
there is video out there of bandits running if you want to familiarize
yourself with the track
|
Reports and box scores are NOT official until recorded by the Treasurer or
Secretary. |
| P= |
Time Trials |
Time |
Heat |
P= |
Feature |
| 1 |
Neal Gillentine
NCR |
15.274 |
Neal Gillentine |
1 |
Neal Gillentine |
| 2 |
Tim Roach |
16.959 |
Tim Roach |
2 |
Tim Roach |
| 3 |
Gary Cooper |
16.972 |
Lyle Phillips |
3 |
Lyle Phillips |
| 4 |
Lyle Phillips |
17.874 |
Gary Cooper |
4 |
Gary Cooper |
| 5 |
Rich Kossak |
18.434 |
Rich Kossak |
5 |
Rich
Breske |
| 6 |
Rich
Breske |
20.504 |
Vern Brown
|
6 |
Vern Brown
|
| 7 |
Vern Brown |
20.721 |
Rich
Breske |
7 |
Rich Kossak |
Columbus 151 Speedway
July 13
FIRA report
On a beautiful
night for racing, Vern Brown showed his dominance of his hometown
track by sweeping the time trials, heat and feature but it wasn’t
easy. As a result of his win at Rockford. Vern started in the back of
the field and had to work his way to the front.
The heat finish was Brown followed by Zeilinga, Greenfield, Cooper,
Roach, Phillips, Kossak and Breske.
The feature finish was one of the closest ever with Brown beating
the 58 of John Zeilinga on the last lap by less than a foot at the
finish line. Grant Greenfield was close third. It was tight racing for
the remainder of the positions with passes for positions in the final
laps with Roach ending up fourth followed by Phillips, Cooper, Kossak
and Breske.
Tim Roach
|
Reports and box scores are NOT official until recorded by the Treasurer or
Secretary. |
| P= |
Time Trials |
Time |
Heat |
P= |
Feature |
| 1 |
Vern Brown |
13.200 |
Vern Brown |
1 |
Vern Brown |
| 2 |
Grant Greenfield |
13.266 |
John Zeilinga |
2 |
John Zeilinga |
| 3 |
John Zeilinga |
13.584 |
Grant Greenfield |
3 |
Grant Greenfield |
| 4 |
Gary Cooper |
14.373 |
Gary Cooper |
4 |
Tim Roach |
| 5 |
Lyle Phillips |
14.088 |
Tim Roach |
5 |
Lyle Phillips |
| 6 |
Rich Kossak |
14.304 |
Lyle Phillips |
6 |
Gary Cooper |
| 7 |
Tim Roach |
14.567 |
Rich Kossak |
7 |
Rich Kossak |
| 8 |
Rich
Breske |
16.400 |
Rich
Breske |
8 |
Rich
Breske |
Rockford Speedway
July 3
Rockford Report by Kevin Ramsell < link
Brown
collected another FIRA Mini Indy feature win.
Brown started on the pole and pulled away to a straightaway lead
over Grant Greenfield.
Greenfield was in a great battle with Johnny Zielinga for the second
spot while Brown was out for a Tuesday night drive.
Brown added another notch to list of feature wins at the Rockford
Speedway. Greenfield held off Zielinga for second. Gary Cooper was
fourth with Lyle Phillips rounding out the top five.
|
Reports and box scores are NOT official until recorded by the Treasurer or
Secretary. |
| |
N/A |
P= |
Heat |
P= |
Feature |
| |
? |
1 |
Vern Brown |
1 |
Vern Brown |
| |
? |
2 |
John Zeilinga |
2 |
Grant Greenfield |
| |
? |
3 |
Grant Greenfield |
3 |
John Zeilinga |
| |
? |
4 |
Gary Cooper |
4 |
Gary Cooper |
| |
? |
5 |
Lyle Phillips |
5 |
Lyle Phillips |
| |
? |
6 |
Rich
Breske |
6 |
Rich
Breske |
| |
? |
7 |
Rich Kossak |
7 |
Doug
Farrell
|
| |
? |
8 |
Doug
Farrell |
8 |
Rich Kossak |
| |
? |
9 |
0Mike
Del Favero |
9 |
0Mike
Del Favero |
| |
? |
10 |
Jim Bass
DNS |
10 |
Jim
Bass DNS |
| |
? |
11 |
Tim Roach
DNS |
11 |
Tim
Roach
DNS |
| |
? |
12 |
Dick Heath
DNS |
12 |
Dick Heath
DNS |
Rockford Speedway
June 23
Rockford Report by Kevin Ramsell < link
John Zeilinga was the winner of the FIRA Mini Indy Feature
event.
Jim Bass was the early leader of the 15-lap feature event. The caution
flew on lap 2 when Richard Kossak made hard contact with the front
stretch wall. He was able to walk away but was done for the night.
On the re-start, Grant Greenfield jumped to the inside to make it
three-wide for the lead. He went into turn one as the new leader.
That lead didn’t last long as Zeilinga moved from his third starting
spot to take over the lead.
Zeilinga fought off a battle from Vern Brown to take home the win.
Greenfield held on for third.
FIRA report
Zeilinga repeats at Rockford
Another great night for racing with 11 cars in the pits.
Unfortunately there is no qualifying at Rockford, it sure would be
great to go one on one with the high banks of Rockford.
With the heat set by inverting the points it was an exciting
start and a sprint to the finish. Vern Brown held on for the win
followed by Zeilinga, McNulty, Greenfield, Bass, Cooper, Farrell,
Kossack and Breske. The 17 of Roach suffered an output shaft failure
and the 35 of Phillips had a chain fail.
It was the first time in over a year that I did not make the
feature but it was interesting to sit in the stands and watch. The
crowd was treated to an exciting feature. Rich Kossack took a hard hit
coming out of turn 4 that had him spinning down the front chute coming
to rest at the start/finish line. Rich was able to walk away but was
done for the night.
On the restart, Jim Bass was on point and they were 4 wide
going into 1. John Zeilinga got inside of Bass and pushed to the wall
forcing Jim to back out of it and drop back.
Vern Brown and Grant Greenfield put on a great show with some
awesome racing.
Brown worked his way to the front and got beside the 58 but
could not complete the pass. The finish was Zeilinga followed by
Brown, Greenfield, Bass, McNulty, Cooper, Farrell and Breske. Phillips
had another chain break in the feature. Kossack was out in a wreck and
Roach did not start.
A REMINDER TO EVERYONE THAT THE NEXT RACE IS TUESDAY JULY 3
AT ROCKFORD AND IS A DOUBLE POINTS RACE
Tim Roach Secretary
|
Reports and box scores are NOT official until recorded by the Treasurer or
Secretary. |
| |
N/A |
P= |
Heat |
P= |
Feature |
| |
|
1 |
Vern Brown |
1 |
John Zeilinga |
| |
|
2 |
John Zeilinga |
2 |
Vern Brown |
| |
|
3 |
Kai McNulty |
3 |
Grant Greenfield |
| |
|
4 |
Grant Greenfield |
4 |
Jim Bass |
| |
|
5 |
Jim Bass |
5 |
Kai McNulty |
| |
|
6 |
Gary Cooper |
6 |
Gary Cooper |
| |
|
7 |
Doug Farrell |
7 |
Doug Farrell |
| |
|
8 |
Rich Kossack |
8 |
Rich
Breske |
| |
|
9 |
0Rich
Breske |
9 |
0 Lyle
Phillips |
| |
|
10 |
Tim Roach |
10 |
Rich Kossack
DNF |
| |
|
11 |
Lyle Phillips |
11 |
Tim Roach
DNS |
Columbus 151 Speedway
June 15
Columbus 151 Speedway
Report
< N/A
- - - - - - - - - - -
FIRA report By Tim Roach
It was a hot (100+) and humid night but the grandstands were
packed. What a great night for racing! With 10 cars in the pits,
qualifying was incredibly close. 7 cars were in the 13 second range.
Jim Bass was fastest with a 13.227 best lap beating Vern Brown by one
tenth. Jim and Vern regularly run practice on Wednesday nights at
Columbus and the 100’s of laps that they run looks to have paid off.
The 10 lap heat was fast and furious. John Zelinga in the 58
went 3 wide going into turn three as he went towards the front. It
sure was good to see the 14 of Kai McNulty running and he had the car
sideways full throttle through the corners. Kai and John made
light contact which send Kai on a gentle spin in turn 4 on the final
lap. The finish was Zelinga followed by Brown, Bass, Greenfield,
Cooper, Roach, Phillips, McNulty and Breske.
The 20 lap feature was just as close as the heat. Grant
Greenfield, back from some late model racing in the Jack Rousch/Erik
Darnell prepared car at Plover was going to the front fast. A little
tap to the bumper of the 17 of Roach let him know the 37 wanted to get
to the front and repeat as a winner at Columbus. There was close
racing and light contact but overall it was a great race. Vern Brown
came out the victor followed closely by Greenfield, Bass and Zelinga.
Roach was able to pass McNulty on the last lap as Kai’s car went
loose. Gary Cooper followed McNulty with Phillips, Breske and Del
Favero rounding out the field.
Next up is Rockford on June 23 and a double points race at
Rockford July 3. See you there.
|
Reports and box scores are NOT official until recorded by the Treasurer or
Secretary. |
| P= |
Time Trials |
Time |
Heat |
P= |
Feature |
| 1 |
Jim Bass |
13.227 |
John Zei |