PASS Race #11 -
Speedway 95 - 8/22
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3rd Place & a 38 Point Lead in
the PASS Standings |
A day that started well, looked grim in mid race and
ended with a surprising finish and a substantial gain in the PASS points lead.
Johnny posted a 4th quickest lap in time trials and drew a dash starting position of 8th.
The dash run ended in a sixth - a solid spot for the feature.
As the race developed, Johnny settled into the top four to top six and kept it easy on the
car. But at mid race dodging a spinning Cassius Clark dropped Johnny to the back of the
pack. Johnny and crew chief Bobby decided to pit the #54 and get the car handling in the
middle of the turns since they were at the back anyway. As action resumed Johnny moved by
the end cars but soon was making little headway. Others couldn't move up either. Speedway
95 is a tricky track and the top fifteen were running strong and just about all at the
same pace.
Then tangles (Ben Rowe), spins (Sam Sessions), motor problems (Rick Martin and Larry
Gelinas) and flats (Gary Smith) took their toll on the front runners. With the car working
better, Johnny was making headway too - and as the race came to an end the #54 moved right
into third place.
With Ben a lap down and running with damage to a fourteen place finish, Johnny picked up
11 spots and 22 points to extend his lead in the PASS championship standings to 38.
As Johnny said: "We pulled this one out of nowhere." |
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