CARQUEST 200 PRESS RELEASE FROM LEBANON VALLEY

CARQUEST 200 VICTORY LAURELS GO TO ALAN JOHNSON

West Lebanon, NY-Alan Johnson won the CARQUEST 200 at Lebanon Valley Speedway Sunday afternoon. It was his first career modified victory at Lebanon Valley. The effort was worth $10,000 to the Pillsbury Racing Team owned by Jim Beachy. The Empire Sports Network Pro Stock Super Dirt Series ran a 25-lap feature on Sunday. Lebanon Valley regular, Chris Crews took top honors for his first career pro stock feature victory. Once again a special thank you goes out to Rich Pallai and CARQUEST for making the CARQUEST Kings 200 Weekend possible.

Thirty-seven modifieds roared to the green flag at the start of the 200-lap modified feature. Polesitter, Donnie Corellis grabbed the lead on the initial start and looked strong in the Rifenburg #57. Early on he had to hold off challenges from Andy Bachetti in the Albreada Waste #4. The first car out of the event was "Slammin" Sammy Barlow, who came out of semi-retirement for this race. Bachetti made the pass on Corellis on lap 18 and Vic Coffey and J.R. Heffner went by Corellis as well. Eddie Marshall set fast time in time trials Sunday with his Marshall Oil #98 and he sat sixth on lap 25. Thirty-two cars were still in the race on lap 32. 

One of the stories that started to develop during the race was the lack of caution flags. Historically the caution flag should have flown several times in the early portions of the race. That was not the case on Sunday as the field stayed clean and green. By lap 40 the top three cars had a full straightaway lead over the fourth place car of Corellis. Tim McCreadie moved past Corellis into fourth on lap 43. Bachetti was looking to decimate the field much as he did the night before with his 358-modified in the Race of Kings. As of lap 50 only nineteen cars remained on the lead lap. 

The only thing slowing the front runners down was lapped traffic, which became increasingly heavy. Heffner used the traffic to get by Coffey and move into second on lap 65. Kenny Tremont had trouble in his heat race and was not one of the drivers who redrew for starting spots and started 23rd. By lap 76 Bachetti had lapped up to 18th position with Tremont the next car set to go a lap down. The break Tremont needed came on lap 83 when McCreadie suddenly slowed in turn three while running sixth. Many drivers used this caution period to make their mandatory pit stop.

The Sweetener's crew of Coffey got his driver out first and into the lead, with Bachetti, Brett Hearn, Alan Johnson and Matt Quinn in tow. This first of only five caution periods sowed the field for twelve laps. At the halfway point there were twenty-three cars left in the race. Just outside the top five at halfway was Tremont, Heffner, Corellis, Marshall and Danny Johnson. On lap 118 Hearn was able to get passed Bachetti in lapped traffic and move into second. The second caution of the race came on lap 20 when Wayne Jelley stopped on the track with a right rear flat tire; he would retire from the event. Tremont moved into the top five for the first time on lap 128. There were twenty-two cars remaining on the track on lap 130.

Hearn made his bid for the lead on lap 157 when Coffey got caught behind a slower car. The two front runners made contact, but continued on. Bachetti was also able to get passed Coffey in the melee. Bachetti's chances of a weekend sweep went away seven laps later as he suddenly slowed on the frontstretch and was finished. A fuel pickup problem was suspected as the reason for his departure. On the restart Coffey faltered which allowed Alan Johnson and Tremont to get by for second and third. Coffey didn't make it much longer as he dropped from the race on lap 172 when he ran out of gas. 

The complexion of the race changed once again on lap 174 as the caution flew for Dave Leckonby. While under yellow the leader, Hearn pulled into the pits without the motor running. Something in the engine had let go and took away Hearn's chances for victory. This handed the lead to Alan Johnson. Tremont tried to challenge but Johnson was much to strong and walked away with his first career modified feature at Lebanon Valley. Heffner who had lost his brakes on lap 80 managed a very respectable third. Eddie Marshall capped off a good weekend with a fourth and Jimmy Horton rounded out the top five finishers. The race took one hour and twenty minutes to complete and seventeen cars finished the race.

The 25-lap pro stock race was all about redemption for Chris Crews. He saw victory taken from his grasps the night before in a photo finish with Rob Yetman. Crews was not to be denied on Sunday. He started the race in 11th and took the lead from Jim Langenback on lap 21. Langenback held on for second with Kevin Ward third, Danny Sanchez fourth and Robbie Speed fifth. Tough break for former Valley regular Buddy Hencke who led the first seven laps of the race before going pitside with mechanical problems. 

Lebanon Valley Speedway will be back in action next Saturday night with a 50-lap race for the sportsman and a 50-lap race for the pro stock. It is the final night of points for the full-fender divisions at the Valley Race time is 6:00.