South Boston summary 2004-04-03

Denny Hamlin doubled his pleasure Saturday night at South Boston Speedway

SOUTH BOSTON, VA. -- Denny Hamlin doubled his fun Saturday night at South Speedway.

The Midlothian, Va. driver won everything in sight in twin 110-lap races for the Late Model Stock Car Division. The two events were the featured attractions of a NASCAR Dodge Weekly Series racing program.

Hamlin secured the pole position for both races and then led every lap of the two events to jump to the top of the division's point standings.

In both Late Model races, Hamlin opened cushions of nearly a straightaway over his closest competitors during green-flag periods.

While Hamlin had the dominant car of the night, the rest of the action in the top 10 was tight throughout both races.

Timothy Peters of Providence, N.C. finished as the runner-up in each event and currently sits in the second-place spot in the division standings.

Hamlin grabbed the pole position for the first race with a qualifying run of 16.008 seconds.

Woody Howard of Chesapeake, Va. finished third in the 27-car field for the opener, followed by Jason Dickerson of Ruckersville, Va. in the fourth-place spot.

Rodney Cook of Reidsville, N.C. motored to a fifth-place finish in the opener, while Scott Worley of Long Island, Va. was sixth.

Rounding out the top 10 in the initial 110-lap event were Wayne Ramsey of Amherst, Va. in seventh, Justin Johnson of Roxboro, N.C. in eighth, Dean Ward of Winston-Salem, N.C. in the ninth spot and Eddie Johnson of Ashland, Va. in the 10th position.

Five caution periods slowed down the first 110-lapper, the last of which set up a three-lap shootout at the end.

Key cautions in the first Late Model event saw T.J. Majors of Mooresville, N.C. go out on lap 15 after encountering problems and Drew Herring of Benson, N.C. and Chad Kendrick of Durham, N.C. getting together on lap 36 while racing for position.

Hamlin had swiped the pole spot for the second 110-lap race with a run of 16.031 seconds in time trials.

Despite enduring four caution periods and one red flag late in the night, nothing could slow Hamlin down.

Worley followed Peters across the finish line for a third-place spot in the nightcap, while Howard was fourth and Dickerson rounded out the top five drivers.

Ramsey finished sixth in the second event and was followed in the top 10 positions by Ward in seventh place, Stacy Puryear of South Boston, Va. in eighth place, Herring in the ninth slot and Jimmy Mullins of Collinsville, Va. in 10th place.

The final caution flag of the second race and the ensuing red flag came out due to an incident on lap 105 involving Peyton Sellers of Danville, Va. and Worley. The two were battling for third place when Worley made contact with the rear of Sellers' ride, sending him spinning and collecting seventh-place runner Ronald Hill of Rougemont, N.C. in the process.

Sellers, the winner of the season-opening Late Model event, placed 17th, one spot ahead of Hill.

Cash, Latta gain wins in twin 50-lap Barkhouser Limited races

Jonathan Cash, the defending Barkhouser Limited Sportsman Division champion, reeled off an impressive victory in the in the first of two 50-lappers Saturday night.

The Oxford, N.C. driver appeared headed to a sweep of the twin events before a black flag for rough driving ended those hopes in the nightcap.

Wally Latta of Durham, N.C. took over first place on lap 28 of the second race and led the rest of the way to score a victory.

The black flew after Cash had driven into the rear of race leader Kenny Bowes of Danville, Va., bringing out the final caution of the second event.

Bowes motored to a second-place finish in the first race, following Cash across the line.

Cash swiped the lead on the first circuit from pole winner Justin Snow of Danville, Va. and was never threatened in the caution-free event.

Snow wound up third in the 25-car field, while Wayne Roach of Chatham, Va. was fourth and Jonathan Bailey of Keysville, Va. rounded out the top five competitors.

Latta, who finished seventh in the first Limited Sportsman race of the night, was followed across the finish line by Bill Moshenek of Providence, N.C. in the second event. Moshenek, however, was disqualified following a post-race inspection.

Eddie DeClue of Butner, N.C. gained the runner-up position following the disqualification in the second 50-lap race, while Troy Jones of Creedmoor, N.C. was moved up to third place. Bowes secured the fourth-place spot after battling back from the incident with Cash and Bailey rounded out the top five drivers in the field.

Cash had to settle for a 10-place finish in the final rundown of the second event.

Wooldridge returns to Victory Lane in Pure Stock ranks

Tommy Wooldridge of Forest, Va. made it two wins in a row in the Pure Stock Division.

Wooldridge started from the pole, avoided an early-race incident and then motored to a victory in the 30-lap event.

Billy Goble of Ringgold, Va. started fourth in the 22-car field, but wound up securing a runner-up finish.

John Goss of Creedmoor, N.C. placed third in the race but was dq'd following post race inspections, Lee Anderson of Glady's VA inherited third spot followed by Scott Phillips of Virgilina Va and Donald Glass of South Boston, VA rounded out the top five.

Wooldridge grabbed the lead position for the start of the race with a qualifying lap of 18.827 seconds.

Ferrell finishes first, but Dowdy awarded Grand Stock victory

Troy Dowdy of Rustburg, Va. finished second to Brent Ferrell of Durham, N.C. at the close of the 30-lap, season-opening Grand Stock Division event.

Following a post-race inspection, however, Ferrell, who swiped the lead on the opening circuit and led the rest of the way, was disqualified, moving Dowdy into the first-place position.

The disqualification moved James Turner of Gibsonville, N.C., who roared from a seventh-place starting spot, up to the runner-up position.

Terri Williams of Franklin, Va. was elevated to third place, while Billy Purnell of Yanceyville, N.C. secured fourth place and Benny Franklin of Rustburg, Va. rounded out the top five drivers in the 13-car field.

Pole sitter Tommy Chandler of Providence, N.C., the 2003 Orange County Speedway champion, encountered mechanical problems early and wound up in 10th place.

Racing actions returns to SoBo on Saturday, April 10

South Boston Speedway will roar back into action on Saturday, April 10, with a 7 p.m. starting time.

The featured attraction of the night will be a 150-lap race for the Late Model Stock Car Division. Other events planned include a 50-lap Barkhouser Limited Sportsman Division race and a 50-lap event for the Ford Focus Midgets, which will be making their first appearance of the season at the speedway.

Also scheduled on April 10, are 30-lap races for the Pure Stock Division and the Grand Stock Division.

Adult admission for the race will be $8 up to 6:30 p.m. and $10 after that. Youth, ages 10-15, will be admitted for $5 and children under the age of 10 will be admitted free with a paid adult.

For more information, visit the speedway's website at www.southbostonspeedway.com of phone the track at (434) 572-4947 or toll free at 1-877-440-1540.

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