Mike Rowe captures PASS Bastille 200 – Whitten, Landry claim Mod and Sportsman wins

Naples ME (4/14/10) Mike Rowe stole the lead from Johnny Clark on a restart with twelve laps to go to capture the Pro ALL Stars Series (PASS) Bastille 200 at Lee (NH) USA Speedway Tuesday night. Clark had to settle for second; Ben Rowe raced under the checkers third. DJ Shaw and Richie Dearborn completed the top five.

Clark looked like he was on his way to PASS North win number four of 2010, setting a blistering pace that left the field in another zip code over the second half of the 200 lap grind. But Mike Rowe was lurking inside the top ten all night long and he turned on the jets with fifty laps to go in an effort to chase down the leader. Still, it looked like his effort would come up one spot short until the final yellow flag of the night flew. The pair let it all hang out on the restart and Rowe took over for good after a little contact between the pair coming out of turn three.

Kelly Moore led a bunch of laps early on until Gary Smith snatched the lead from Moore under green. Both drivers slid back as the night wore on, Smith settling for sixth and Moore eighth at the end of 200 green flag laps. Travis Benjamin made a surprise appearance behind the wheel of one of Richard Moody Racing’s rides and he was spectacular, taking the lead from Johnny Clark on lap 78. Benjamin paced the field until lap 99 when a flat tire ended his run, handing the lead back to Smith.

Wholesale pit stops left just two cars circling the speedway, and Johnny Clark quickly dispatched Rookie Joey Doiron and Scott Dragon to reassume the lead. That’s the way it went for ninety laps until Rowe got his shot at Clark and the win on the nights’ final restart.

Rowe’s margin of victory was .386 seconds. Seven cars completed all 200 laps in a face paced race that was slowed by four caution periods. Derek Ramstrom, Scott Chubbuck and Kelly Moore each won a qualifying race.

Wayne Whitten Jr. knows his way around the Lee oval and he proved it once again, winning the PASS Mod feature after a 20 lap duel with Andy Shaw .Rich Ferriera looked strong in the first half of the event until he gave up the lead to Whitten and retired shortly thereafter. Scott McDaniel, Bill Dixon, Sulo Burbank and Leo Oliveira came under the checkers third through fifth.

Showers set in just prior to the start of the 75 lap PASS Sportsman feature but a determined effort by the LEE USA track crew and the drivers themselves got the feature on track after a short delay. R.J. Austin and Dan McKeage were scheduled to lead the field to the green but McKeage had a soft right rear that forced a pit stop and a start at the tail end of the field. Austin led twenty six laps from the green but the final fifty laps became a battle between home track ace Grant Aither and PASS sportsman regular Mike Landry. The pair raced nose to tail, Aither holding down the point until a lap 63 restart gave Landry the opportunity he was looking for. Landry raced Aither side by side until lap 67 when he put his ride out front for good.

Second went to Aither, with Jim Russell and Nate Leavitt third and fourth. Dan McKeage came from the back of the field for a fine fifth.

Next stop for the PASS super late models and Mods is Scarborough Maine when Beech Ridge Motor Speedway hosts the two touring series plus their own Sport Series, Road Runners and Wildcats. Post time on Saturday July 17th is 6:00 PM.

Get all the latest Pro All Stars news at www.proallstarsseries.com; Beech Ridge Motor Speedway is on line at www.beechridge.com

Unofficial Results – PASS NORTH – Bastille 200 Lee USA Speedway – 7/13

1) Mike Rowe 2) Johnny Clark 3) Ben Rowe 4) DJ Shaw 5) Richie Dearborn 6) Gary Smith 7) Trevor Sanborn Kelly Moore 9) Donnie Whitten 10) Derek Ramstrom 11)Joey Doiron 12) Scott Dragon 13) Gary Drew 14) Nick Ribbe 15) Travis Benjamin 16) Scott Alexander 17) Matt Frahm 18) Adam Bates 19) Ryan Vanasse 20)JR Baril 21) Cassius Clark 22) Randy Turner 23) Rich Eaton 24) Scott Chubbuck

Unofficial Results – PASS Sportsman 75

1) Mike Landry 2) Grant Aither 3) Jim Russell 4) Nate Leavitt 5) 38 Dan McKeage 6) Billy Childs Jr. 7) Shane Tatro Mark MacGiver 9) Craig Smith 10) Carey Martin 11) Shane Green 12) Bob Emery 13) 90 Dana Reed 14) Bill Ahern 15) Steve Bennett Sr. 16) Frank Wear 17) Scott Dorr 18) RJ Austin 19) Randy Brunelle 20) Chris Watson 21) David Vaughn 22) Clyde Hennessey 23) Lyman McKeage DNS: Jesse Bousquet, Matt Stewart

Unofficial Results – PASS Mod 40

1) Wayne Whitten Jr. 2) Andy Shaw 3) Scott McDaniel 4) Bill Dixson 5) 21 Sulo Burbank 6) 53 Leo Oliviera 7) 29 Greg Ellis 53W Alan Wilson 9) Sumner Sessions 10) Mitch Miller 11) Jon Brill 12) Rich Ferreira 13) Charlie Small