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After a second place heat finish, Brandon Eichelberger set the pace from
lap 6 on as he won the opening IMCA Modified 20 lap feature of the 2006
season at Prescott Valley Speedway on Saturday night. A great field of 22
cars included several track regulars from Mohave Valley Raceway as that
track was hosting a dwarf car Western Nationals show on the weekend.
Phoenix charger Ryan Roath has been a Mohave Valley regular so far in
2006, but ran a strong second behind Eichelberger tonight as double
division racer George Fronsman ran third ahead of former Canyon champion
Shawn Zelenka. In the super stock action, Fronsman won his heat race and
then led all 20 laps of their feature action. Recent CAR winner Dickie
Barnes was a strong second in the feature after winning his heat race.
Bill Moore Jr was third in the main event. A new division to the 1/4 mile
clay oval, the limited sprints, appeared with 11 cars and heat winner
Nathan High captured feature honors ahead of Steve Sussex and heat winner
Brian Swinehart. The new hobby stock class had three cars for their
opening night and Mark Zimmerman won both the heat race and the main
event. Fritz Croy outraced his father Wendel Croy for second.
The big field of IMCA Modifieds were split into three heat races. Jim
Collinsworth won heat 1 ahead of John Morris Jr and Flagstaff's Bill
Miller. Eric Center outraced Prescott's own Tim Palmer and Fronsman in
heat 2 and Richard Markley got the win in heat 3 over Eichelberger and
Mohave Valley regular David Boardman, who made the long tow from Las Vegas
NV. Mitch Mohler was the only feature scratch to leave a 21 car main
event. The feature had to be restarted after Ben Peterson and pure stock
graduate Steve Shumaker got tangled. The day was over for Peterson.
Another Phoenix driver who has been racing weekly at Mohave Valley, Joe
Parmeley led the first two laps of the feature before Zelenka took
command. Lap 3 had three straight yellow flags. Eichelberger grabbed the
top spot on lap 6 and was never headed as he won ahead of Roath, Fronsman,
Zelenka, Collinsworth, Center, Boardman, Mohave Valley point leader and
defending champion Jeff Sheppard Jr from Kingman, Jim MacNeil, Morris,
Mark Dryer and James Bond. Parmeley settled for 13th. Eichelberger had to
survive five additional yellow flags while leading to post the win. 18 of
the 21 starters were still in action at the checkered flag.
Eleven super stocks were divided into a pair of heat races and Fronsman
won the first ahead of Kingman's Doug Humphries and Randy Aughe. Barnes
won heat 2 over Casa Grande long tow Michael Harrison and Moore. Fronsman
was never headed in the 20 lap feature that ran without a single yellow
flag. Ten of the 11 starters finished and Barnes ran second ahead of
Moore, Humphries, Harrison, Troy Mikkelson, Wayne Bishop and Aughe.
11 limited sprint cars signed in and 9 raced in the feature action.
Swinehart beat Sussex in heat 1 and High outraced Tim Beal and John
Brinkley in heat 2. T Beal was a feature scratch, but Bobby Marcum made it
out for the main after missing the heat action. This is a carbureted
sprint car class, not fuel injected. High led all the way in their 20 lap
feature. The red flag dropped twice on lap 9 as first Marcum flipped in
turn 2 and the restart saw Chris Beal flipping in the same spot. Sussex
finished second ahead of Swinehart, Ron Greene and Jerry Pritcharett.
The new hobby stock class is bomber type cars and Zimmerman won the heat
race over W Croy and F Croy. He also won the main, but F Croy ran second
this time ahead of W Croy.
April 29 will see the pure stocks, NADCAR dwarf cars, mini sprints and mod
lites in action. The IMCA Modifieds return on May 6.
Summary Hobby Stock Heat-Mark Zimmerman, Wendel Croy, Fritz Croy.
Main-Zimmerman, F Croy, W Croy. Limited Sprint Car Heat 1-Brian Swinehart,
Steve Sussex, Chris Beal, Ron Greene, Jerry Pritcharett. Heat 2-Nathan
High, Tim Beal, John Brinkley, Keith Smith. Main-High, Sussex, Swinehart,
Greene, Pritcharett, Bobby Marcum, C Beal, Brinkley, Smith. Super Stock
Heat 1-George Fronsman, Doug Humpries, Randy Aughe, Patrick Shumaker,
Jimmy Montgomery. Heat 2-Dickie Barnes, Michael Harrison, Bill Moore Jr,
Wayne Bishop, Troy Mikkelson. Main-Fronsman, Barnes, Moore, Humphries,
Harrison, Mikkelson, Bishop, Aughe, Montgomery, Brian King, Shumaker. IMCA
Modified Heat 1-Jim Collinsworth, John Morris Jr, Bill Miller, Joe
Parmeley, James Bond. Heat 2-Eric Center, Tim Palmer, George Fronsman,
Shawn Zelenka, Jeff Sheppard Jr. Heat 3-Richard Markley, Brandon
Eichelberger, David Boardman, Ryan Roath, Chuck Kuehl. Main-Eichelberger,
Roath, Fronsman, Zelenka, Collinsworth, Center, Boardman, Sheppard Jr, Jim
MacNeil, Morris, Mark Dryer, Bond, Parmeley, Miller, Steve Shumaker,
Palmer, Justin Martin, Kuehl, Markley, Jim LaPierre, Ben Peterson.
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