TRACKS: Ware Takes Second Feature Win at Auburndale

13 October 1999

by Larry Vergon

Auburndale, FL- Steve Ware pilots a Street Stock, and this season is also driving the Don Carroll Limited Late Model Sportsman.

Saturday night was a good night for the young driver, as he won his second Limited Late Model Sportsman feature of the season and finished second in the Street Stock Feature. Carroll gave Steve the chance to drive the LLMS entry earlier in the year, saying Steve helped him out by working on the car during the week and deserved a chance to race it. Ware started the 25 lap feature on the pole and led the entire race for the victory. Richard Elkins Jr. took the green flag right behind Ware and maintained second the whole race, unable to get by Ware, but keeping pressure on him the entire race.

Behind these two, the racing was hotly contested, as several drivers traded positions all race long. Harold Cannon started on the outside of the third row, was involved in an early race skirmish, and went to the tail of the field on the restart. At the checkered flag, Cannon had worked his way back to fourth and was challenging Bart Weatherford for the third spot. Weatherford made his way to third from a ninth place start. Ray Cuzzone rounded out the top five, also coming from the rear of the pack after suffering superficial body damage in another early incident that saw his car nosed into the front stretch wall. Cuzzone and Elkins won their heats.

28 cars took the green for the 25 lap Street Stock Feature, with 18 year old Travis Roland taking the lead from his outside pole position and leading the rest of the way to the finish for his third win of the season. Billy Jones was right on Roland's rear bumper until lap eighteen, when a flat right rear tire put an end to his night. Steve Ware brought his car home in second, after an eleventh place start, with Jim Orisich third, taking the green flag in seventh. Jeff

McCaw was fourth after a twelfth place start, and Ron Lofquist brought the 'lonely Ford' home in fifth, up from twenty-second at the green. Points leader James Wright III was running third until a lap fifteen restart, when the car never got up to speed, bringing the caution back out and dropping

Wright to the tail of the large field. The mysterious ailment then disappeared and he ran the remainder of the race, but a fourteenth place finish will cut into his points lead. Orisich and Roland were heat winners. Jay Kaminski came from tenth to take the win in the Modified Mini Stock 25 lap feature. Kaminski took the lead on lap 7 and was never challenged the rest of the way for his third win of the season. Duane Parker, the feature winner at the last event, came from twelfth to finish second. Second place points man Wayne Weaver came from seventh to third, cutting into Tony Davidson's point lead, as Davidson's car was not right on this night, and only managed an eleventh place finish. Chris Hamlet was fourth, with Eugene Davidson taking fifth. Heat Race winners were Hamlet and Eugene Davidson.

In V8 Pure Stock, Mike Peace won his first feature of the season, with Troy Lacey chasing him the entire 15 lap event to take second. Points leader Greg Bacon survived two near misses to keep is championship hopes alive, and was third at the checkered flag. Jason Todd came from twelfth to fourth, and Roy Wilshire rounded out the top five. Lacey and Bacon won their heat races.

The 4 Cylinder Pure Stocks 15 lap feature was won by Scott Taylor, his second feature win of the season, after a sixth place start. Joe Thomas came from seventh to finish second, with points leader Chris Narramore coming from tenth to take third. George Gorham Jr. was fourth, and Timmy McKenzie fifth after starting in eighth. Gorham won the heat race.

The Dwarf Cars returned to Auburndale with Don Hess Jr. winning his third feature of the season at Auburndale. In an unusual night, the feature saw several Dwarf cars required the services of the wrecker crews. These cars usually run virtually caution free, but several incidents saw cars going back to the pits on the 'hook'. Allen Davis, the last feature winner at Auburndale, was second. Rick Lundeen was third, followed by Fred Brunson, and Max Howe. Heat races went to by Hess and Bob Hoffman.

Racing returns Oct. 16, with Limited Late Model Sportsmen, Street Stocks, Modified Mini Stock, V8 Pure Stock, and 4 Cylinder Pure Stock. Race time is 7:00 PM.

Editors Note: For hundreds of hot racing photos and racing art, be sure to visit The Racing ImageGalleries and the Visions of Speed Art Gallery.