Hardeeville Speedway report 2001-06-30

HARDEEVILLE, S.C. (June 30, 2001) – Many fans 'answered the call' to attend Sprint PCS Night at Hardeeville Motor Speedway Saturday evening. Those drivers 'dialed' in to take home the victory were Tommy Porter, Jr., Donnie Cannon, Stephen Moore, Chris Beach, Glenn Mappus and Billy Tysinger.

Tommy Porter, Jr. took his seventh win of the season in the O.C. Welch Ford-Lincoln-Mercury Late Models division. Porter, Jr. started on the outside pool, but quickly captured the top spot from Mickey Carter of Savannah, Ga. On lap five, the No. 27 car of Bubba Jones spun in turn four, after contact with another competitor. Chris Beach, a five-time winner this season, started from the rear of the pack and was up to the second position by lap 10, ready to make a charge on Porter, Jr. On lap 31 of the 40-lap feature race, the No. 28 car of Skeeter Godbee of Sylvania, Ga. spun, allowing the field to bunch up for the restart. Porter, Jr. of Savannah, Ga. was just too much for the young Hardeeville, S.C.-native, as he took his seventh win this year and third in a row.

The Xtreme Stock Cars race was a dogfight among the nine competitors in action. Donnie Cannon, driving Scott Thorne's machine, started from the pole, but was quickly overtaken by Christie Anderson of Ellabell, Ga. on lap three. Cannon of Rincon, Ga. retook the lead on lap nine, with the battle on for the second position. With Cannon in the lead, the rest of the group were three-wide for control of the second, third and fourth positions, with Bob Gossett of Hilton Head, S.C. finally taking the spot. Ray Smith of Early Branch, S.C., three-time winner this season Don Dean of Sheldon, S.C. and points leader Tim Dasher rounded out the top-five.

The 20-lap Mini Stocks race went caution free, with Stephen Moore of St. George, S.C. taking his fourth victory of the season. Moore and Rincon, Ga.'s Mark Terry are locked in a tight points battle, after Terry won his sixth race of the season last weekend. Terry was ahead by one point going into tonight's race, but now trails Moore by two points. Newcomer Chris Johnson of Rincon, Ga. was on the pole and led for the first two laps before being overtaken by Moore, who led the rest of the way. Terry battled with Chief Johnny Brown of Bluffton, S.C. for the second position and came out on top with Brown finishing off the podium in third place.

The combined Pro/Masters/Semi-Pro Legends Cars race had 22 cars take the green flag. The first caution flag waved on lap six after the car of Steve Desimone of Hilton Head, S.C. spun. Chris Beach, a regular in the O.C. Welch Ford-Lincoln-Mercury Late Models, started from the pole and led every lap of the race, with the charging Corey Fletcher of Bloomingdale, Ga. giving him heat at the tail end of the race. A scary moment came on lap 23, when Randy Forehand of Sylvania, Ga. spun on the backstretch. With the field stretched around the whole length of the 1/3-mile track, oncoming traffic had to dodge the spinning car. Luckily, all made it through unscathed, and Forehand was able to continue. The caution allowed Fletcher to close right in on the back bumper of Beach for the restart, but Fletcher was unsuccessful in getting around him. Jonathan Haidon, last week's winner, finished in third place.

The Street Stocks took to the track, with Jim Beckett of Ridgeland, S.C. on the pole. Beckett looked to be on his way to his first career victory at Hardeeville Motor Speedway, stretching out his lead while the rest of the field duked it out, but Glenn Mappus of Ridgeville, S.C. dove underneath Beckett on lap 19 of the 20-lap feature to pull off his first career victory. Rick 'The Bounty' Hunter of Savannah, Ga. was also able to get around Beckett to finish in the second position, with Beckett capturing the third position.

Billy Tysinger, Jr. of Hardeeville, S.C. captured his seventh win this season in the Legends Cars Young Lions division. Tysinger held off the tough competition of Trey Carr of Evans, Ga. and Jimmy Lang of Bluffton, S.C.

The next event for the Hardeeville Motor Speedway is the Hilton Head Island Honda Fourth of July Extravaganza on Wednesday, July 4. All seven divisions that compete at HMS are scheduled to compete on July 4. Besides exciting racing action, Hilton Head Island Honda also presents Michelle Murray, a local country music artist, Sky Lungston, a professional motorcycle jumper, and fireworks to conclude the evening.

Hardeeville Motor Speedway is located three miles southeast of I-95 on Highway 17. Grandstands open at 5:00 p.m., with qualifying races beginning at 6:00 p.m. Feature races will begin at 7:30 p.m. Ticket prices are $10 for adults, with reduced rates for seniors, military and children. Children under five are admitted free.

The car show scheduled for July 6-8 at the Hardeeville Motor Speedway has been postponed to a later date.

HMS RACE RESULTS
SATURDAY, JUNE 30, 2001

O.C. Welch Ford-Lincoln-Mercury Late Models: 1. Tommy Porter, Jr. (Savannah, Ga.), 2. Chris Beach (Hardeeville, S.C.), 3. Leland Prewitt (Savannah, Ga.), 4. Mickey Carter (Savannah, Ga.), 5. Skeeter Godbee (Sylvania, Ga.), 6. Bubba Jones (Savannah, Ga.), 7. Mikie Stafford (Ellabell, Ga.), 8. Kenny Cranston (Beaufort, S.C.), 9. Bill Marburger (Beaufort, S.C.)

Legends Cars (Pro/Masters/Semi-Pro): 1. Chris Beach (Hardeeville, S.C.), 2. Corey Fletcher (Bloomingdale, Ga.), 3. Jonathan Haidon (Hilton Head, S.C.), 4. Thomas Coburn III (Tillman, S.C.), 5. Walter Reardon (Savannah, Ga.), 6. Kevin Eves (Guyton, Ga.), 7. Kevin O'Brien (Burton, S.C.), 8. Adam Congrove (Hilton Head, S.C.), 9. Dean Staley (Orangeburg, S.C.), 10. Steve Johnson (Hampton, S.C.), 11. Steve Desimone (Hilton Head, S.C.), 12. Jason Colson (Rincon, Ga.), 13. Darren Smith (Orangeburg, S.C.), 14. Darren Gordon (Hilton Head, S.C.), 15. Dave Sondles (Johns Island, S.C.), 16. Lee Varner (Savannah, Ga.), 17. Randy Forehand (Sylvania, Ga.), 18. Jeremiah Dennen (Beaufort, S.C.), 19. David DeTorre (Raleigh, N.C.), 20. Justin Forehand (Sylvania, Ga.), 21. Bob Gossett (Hilton Head, S.C.), 22. Tad Segars (Hilton Head, S.C.)

Street Stocks: 1. Glenn Mappus (Ridgeville, S.C.), 2. Rick Hunter (Savannah, Ga.), 3. Jim Beckett (Ridgeland, S.C.), 4. Don Dean (Sheldon, S.C.), 5. Payton Prewitt (Savannah, Ga.), 6. Roy Cox (Savannah, Ga.), 7. Scott Russell (Charlotte, N.C.), 8. Dave Wallace (Goose Creek, S.C.), 9. Ellis Huggins (Richmond Hill, Ga.)

Xtreme Stock Cars: 1. Donnie Cannon (Rincon, Ga.), 2. Bob Gossett (Hilton Head, S.C.), 3. Ray Smith (Early Branch, S.C.), 4. Don Dean (Sheldon, S.C.), 5. Tim Dasher (Bluffton, S.C.), 6. Keith Sanchez (Hardeeville, S.C.), 7. Clint Sills (Bloomingdale, Ga.), 8. Jonathan Jones (Savannah, Ga.), 9. Christie Anderson (Ellabell, Ga.)

Mini Stocks: 1. Stephen Moore (St. George, S.C.), 2. Mark Terry (Rincon, Ga.), 2.), 3. Johnny Brown (Bluffton, S.C.), 4. Marcus Dampier (Savannah, Ga.), 5. Chris Johnson (Rincon, Ga.), 6. Neal Jordan (Pelion, S.C.), 7. Donny Wegmann (Port Wentworth, Ga.), 8. Randy Day (Beaufort, S.C.), 9. Doug Butler (Hardeeville, S.C.)

Legends Cars (Young Lions): 1. Billy Tysinger (Hardeeville, S.C.), 2. Trey Carr (Evans, Ga.), 3. Jimmy Lang (Bluffton, S.C.)

-HS