Sas Late Model Feature Story

[SASPEEDRACER24]

MY VIEW FROM TURN 2

by Marc Roy & Deb Williams

 

Sparks Fly As Bendele Wins Late Model Feature on July 12

 

Fighting a full moon, loose conditions in Turns 1 & 2, and sparks inside his car and on and off the track, Larry Bendele (#23) won the NASCAR Weekly Racing Series Late Model race last weekend. It was his 5th win of this long racing season.

 

Danny Storbeck (#29) and Tom Grothues (#11) led the field to green, with Damon Bean (#44), Jesse Salazar (#18) and Scott Jerkins (#10) rounding out the top five. Within the first few laps, Bendele went from a 7th starting position to 4th place, avoiding a spin that involved Scott Jerkins (#10) and Jason Smith (#28) on Lap 5. Michael Lampton (#32) spun to avoid the accident that temporarily slowed down the action.

 

“The track was very different from usual tonight. In Turns 1 and 2, my car was loose but it was fine in Turns 3 and 4,” Bendele explained. As a side note to Bendele’s comments, Turn 2 seemed slick all night and apparently caused several problems, maybe due to the heavy rains all week.

 

Once the green flag fell again, Storbeck and Grothues battled for the top spot until Lap 11 when Storbeck spun out in Turn 2 and collected Grothues in the incident. Storbeck’s car headed trunk first into the backstretch wall and went sailing 3 to 4 feet in the air! Luckily Storbeck was okay, but the accident also involved Damon Bean and Scott Jerkins. Jerkins’ car sustained minor damage, and he was able to continue after a short pit stop. Bean suffered heavier damage, but he was able to continue the race 14 laps later, minus a hood. Storbeck was unable to complete the race.

 

When the green flag fell again, Bendele took the lead and held it for 23 laps. During the long green period, Donny Horelka (#41), who had started the race in 8th place, closely stalked Bendele for the lead. Bendele was also fighting another battle inside his car. Sparks started coming inside the car from the right rear area. “It didn’t affect me very much, but it was still a concern,” Bendele explained. The field thinned out throughout the race, and on Lap 32 Jim Creech (#2) almost barbequed his car when his fuel pump broke and the car burst into flames. Afterwards Creech explained that he might have tried to bring the car around to the pits, but he felt the floorboards were getting too hot to handle, forcing him to stop in Turn 2. After the cleanup was over and everyone was squared away to race, Bendele led the field to the green flag with Horelka 2nd, Danny Garcia 3rd, Jason Smith 4th and Jesse Salazar 5th.

 

Again, Horelka and Bendele battled for the lead. On Lap 34, Horelka passed Bendele, which really surprised Bendele. “Once I finally get to the front, I usually stay there and I don’t normally get passed, ” Bendele said. After the pass was made and they came into Turn 2, Horelka spun out. Depending on the source, controversial views on the spinout were expressed throughout the stands and pits. Unfortunately, I was not in a spot where I could view the accident. The track officials determined that Bendele was not involved, and he was able to restart the race in the lead. In addition, Salazar (#18) could not avoid the spinout and plowed into Horelka, taking him out of the race. As Bendele took the green, Garcia (#97) made a hard charge for the lead, but he was unable to catch Bendele during the final laps of the race. The Top Five finishers were 1st Larry Bendele (#23), 2nd Danny Garcia (#97), 3rd Jason Smith (#28), 4th Ronnie Smith (#5) and 5th Scott Jerkins (#10).

 

Aramendia Racing, Action Rentals and Longs Engines sponsor Larry Bendele. Bendele is now back in the Late Model points lead at San Antonio Speedway, and he is also in the top tier of the NASCAR Sunbelt Region’s points race.

 

Comments welcomed...

[ChuckLicata]

Wow!!!

Look at Marc Roy---expert Photographer turned Motorsports Writer!!

You go, boy!!

Guess I'd better watch my back on the radio show, huh??

[TxRaceFan]

Paranoid, much, Chuck?

 

Great job, Marc!

 

It's actually refreshing to get an unbiased recap of a race in a public forum, whether it be from someone in an official capacity, or not.

 

Also, while kudos are going out, Thanks, too, to the safety crews who were ON THE BALL Saturday night, when needed, both for the fire and brimstone in the LM race, and the hard hit that Driver #22 took in the Super Streets.