By Jim Clarke, Clarke Motorsports Communications
After a 3 race weekend that saw him take over the top spot on the Mr. DIRTcar sportsman modified title hunt and score a win (his 21st of the year) in his first ever visit to Cornwall Motor Speedway, Chris Raabe was looking set his sights on another strong weekend with stops Friday, September 26th at Brighton Speedway and Saturday, September 27th at Rolling Wheels Raceway Park. The teenaged sensation from Napanee, Ontario had already clinched the track titles at Brockville Ontario Speedway and Thunder Alley Speed Park - as well as the DIRTcar Northern Region sportsman modified title and hoped to finish the weekend with another pair of feathers in his cap.
Heading into the Friday night show at Brighton – part of the track’s Applefest Shootout Weekend – the Scott Industrial Services/TyRoute Communications-Telus/Kingston Hyundai/Kingston RV Centre/Waste Management/Brunet Plumbing/Kwik Load Products/McColman Media/Len Corcoran Excavating #01 team was unbeaten in 4 Lucas Oil sportsman series starts. That 100% batting average earned him a spot in the Dirt Track Digest All-Star Race, for a $2,500.00 payout. The 17 year-old 12th grader from Napanee and District Secondary School scored a convincing win in the 15 east-versus-west showdown and added another piece of hardware to his trophy case.
Raabe finished 3rd in the night’s second heat race and advanced to the 35 lap main event. After starting mid-pack, he was advancing nicely through the field but got collected in someone else’s wreck on lap 13 and damaged his favourite piece, the team’s 2006 TEO Pro Car. The car was hurt badly enough that it needed to be taken from the track on the rollback. With another show in less than 24 hours and a 4 hour drive from their home base, it was time for the crew to really show their stuff. The old faithful racer was hauled back to Smith’s Kwik Load race shop where it was carefully taken apart. It was there that they learned the damage looked worse than it actually was.
By 2:AM, the car was in pieces on the floor. Parts were changed. The body work was hammered back into place and just after 5:AM, the trusty steed was back to looking like the championship winning piece it is. After a few hours sleep in the motor home (parked just outside) the crew scaled the car, loaded it into the Kingston RV Centre hauler and headed for Rolling Wheels. Team owner Garry McColman says this is what championship winning runs are made of. “The team takes their lead from Chris and his Dad (Mike Raabe) and never complains”, explained McColman. “We all knew it was worth the effort to give the driver what he wanted. Without the 150% effort of Greg and Chris Hale and Dave Brunet, the weekend would have had a very different result”.
With valuable Mr. DIRTcar sportsman modified championship trail points up for grabs, the team entered the Saturday show at Rolling Wheels with a ‘cautiously aggressive’ race approach. They’d do the best they could with what they had to work with and hope to come away with at least the same point’s lead cushion they entered the weekend with. After winning the night’s 4th and final heat race, the crew staged an informal meeting and decided to throw the ‘cautiously’ term out of their strategy.
Chris Raabe took the green flag in the Taylor Rental 30 lap sportsman main event from 5th starting spot, while his closest competition Dan Wiesner went away from 11th on the grid. A strong run saw the Teenage Tornado cross the line 2nd, chasing race winner Greg Panunte who won for the 2nd time in 3 starts. Wiesner finished 11th and is now 60 points in arrears to Raabe, while Panunte – on the strength of his current hot streak – is 3rd, just 69 markers off the pace.
With his 2nd place showing, Chris Raabe officially clinched the 2008 Rolling Wheels Raceway Park sportsman modified championship. His 3rd track title of ’08.
Coming up: Friday, October 3rd – Fulton Speedway, Fulton NY. Wednesday, October 8th – Can Am Motorsports Park.
Learn more about Chris Raabe at www.chrisraabe.com
Photo tag line: Napanee, Ontario’s Chris Raabe waits for his chance to ‘hot lap’ his #01 sportsman modified Friday, September 26th at Brighton Speedway Park. (Jim Clarke photo)
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