Columns

PA 600 Speedweek News; Burritt Wins One for Grandpa

Racin' with Barry

by Barry Angstadt

Last Sunday, I ventured west to Trail-Way Speedway for their annual Kevin Gobrecht Memorial, featuring the 600cc and 270cc Micro-Sprints, along with the 1000cc Sidewinder Sprints. I came home with a scoop, and it deals with next year’s PA 600 Speedweek.

Even though it’s 12:30 a.m. And I have to get up for work on Monday morning, I couldn’t wait to sit down at the computer and type this column. Now I know how real news reporters feel when they break a story.

When I asked Dan Little if he had any news regarding the 2009 Speedweek series, he just smiled. “Let me see if we want to let the cat out of the bag,” he stated, then walked toward the back of his trailer. In less than a minute, he was back, and he was accompanied by Trip Kone, his accomplice as co-organizer of the immensely popular 600cc Speedweek.

“Yeah, we can release the news,” was Kone’s response. What the two of them proceded to tell me is, as far as I can determine, something totally unique in the world of motorsports.

Three of next season’s Speedweek events will include a “race within a race”; there will be a special race in which the competitors will be Micro-Sprint manufacturers, driving their “house cars”.

“The chassis builders asked for this,” reported Little. “It’s a three-race series, pitting car builders against one another, and it’s winner-take-all.”

Now Kone was smiling. “I can see all of the other 600cc drivers standing against the fence, watching to see whose car will win. It’s gonna be a fun deal.”

Racin' with Barry

by Barry Angstadt

When I arrived at Lanco's Clyde Martin Memorial Speedway on Saturday, August 30th, someone excitedly informed me that "we have a car in the pits from Arizona." That proclamation certainly piqued my interest, and I headed toward the back end of the pit area to discover the identity of our western visitor and, maybe more importantly, exactly why they decided to make a cross-country trek to race with us at the Labor Day Shootout. The answers I received definitely raised my eyebrows...

The identity issue was solved quickly. Fourteen-year-old Derek Sell was the driver of the white No. 20 that sported a Factor One chassis with a 600cc Honda mounted on its left side.

Derek was very friendly to the stranger who was asking lots of questions, and he spoke freely about the fact that he and his family had recently relocated from Tuscon to Royersford, Pa. A change in jobs for his father, Rob, was the reason for the move. Pretty soon dad was also on the scene, smiling easily and filling me in on his son's racing career.

by Barry Angstadt

We've all heard stories about people who pull stunts that seem to define the word "stupid". Well, here's another addition to that list...

Craig DeSantis is a veteran of Micro-Sprint racing. Craig, in fact, was winning races when the little speedsters were still referred to as "Micro-Midgets".

In the mid-'90's, when I became enamored with the world of small car racing (especially Micro-Sprints), DeSantis was one of the biggest names at Lanco's Clyde Martin Memorial Speedway. Back then, he was competing, and winning, in the 125cc and 250cc Two-Stroke (now known simply as the 270cc) divisions.

The past few years have seen the likable resident of Lititz, Pa. step out of the driver's seat. Craig's been happy to serve in the role as car owner and crew chief for a couple of potent 250cc Four-Stroke micros. His cars were plastered with the stickers given to feature winners at Lanco, driven to most of those victories by Mike Rutherford and Craig's stepson, Chad Rhoads.

Flipper Beats the Iceman At Hamlin...

Racin' with Barry...
by Barry Angstadt

Flipper Beats the Iceman At Hamlin...

I think race drivers should have nicknames. Maybe not all race drivers, but many of them should be identified by a cool nickname. It helps the fans relate to their heroes of speed, and I haven't met a driver yet (with one exception) who doesn't enjoy being introduced by his/her nickname. Warren Ruffner, the esteemed announcer at the Reading Fairgrounds, was a master at coming up with nicknames that really fit certain drivers, and the fans, along with the racers themselves, loved it.

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