This message was edited on
May 07, 2009 at
11:13:52 PM by Bill W
Brandon Wimmer – Fourth in Franklin!
(Bill W) May 7, 2009 – After getting rained out at Williams Grove on Friday, and dropping a cylinder at Lincoln on Saturday, Brandon Wimmer could have come home disappointed. A stop Sunday at Tri-City Speedway in Franklin, Pennsylvania changed his luck, however, as he registered a fourth place finish after charging up from tenth. This weekend, the All Star Circuit of Champions will try it again at the Grove on Friday, and then compete two nights at Port Royal Speedway in the Keystone State.
Even though there was no rain, the trip to Lincoln Speedway near Abbottstown, Pennsylvania on Saturday was a wash for Brandon anyway. In qualifying, the engine laid an egg. "As soon as I got on the gas, I could tell that we had lost a cylinder," he says. "After that, we just left. That was disappointing, because I really liked the looks of that track. We took off for Franklin, and probably got there about 1:30 a.m. We got up and changed the motor."
The 4/10 mile oval in Franklin played host to an unsanctioned show that attracted many of the All Stars, as well as the best in Western Pennsylvania. Brandon started sixth in his heat in the draw format, and moved up to a third place finish, putting him in the redraw for the feature event.
His luck was typical of the early season. "It was another lucky draw for the feature…10 out of 12," he explains. "(Car owner) Rick (Ferkel) and I were talking on the way home, and when we've had to draw for the feature this year, I don't think it's been any better than ten."
The fans in Franklin were treated to a great finale. "The track was really nice," says Brandon. "There were really three grooves, the bottom, middle and top. We were good wherever we needed to go on the track. I think we really would have had something for the guys up front, but we started so far back."
Brandon picked off a few cars shortly after the green flag fell. "We really got a good start again, getting by (Greg) Wilson and some other guys," he says. "In the first couple laps we were up to sixth. I actually was by (Dale) Blaney at one time, but then he got back by me later on. There was only one caution, so things got spread out there a bit."
Ed Lynch Jr., who won, and Tim Shaffer, who finished second, started towards the front. Blaney finished third, with Brandon right behind, registering the best finish for the team of the young season. "Lynch and Shaffer started up front, so it was just tough to run them down from where we started back in row five," he says.
The strong finish came at a perfect time for Brandon. "It definitely would have been tough without the stop in Franklin," he admits. "To have a rainout on Friday, and hurt a motor on Saturday…just to turn back around and come home would have been tough."
The best of the Pennsylvania Posse await the All Stars again this weekend. Friday's race at the Grove should be a good one. Brandon will race for the first time ever at Port Royal on Saturday and Sunday. The race at Port will serve as the Bob Weikert Memorial with the top four from Saturday locked into Sunday's show.
Brandon and Rick Ferkel would like to thank the following sponsors for all their help: Shorty's Truck Repair, Smith's Farm, Goodyear Tires, Griff's Engines, Kear's Speed Shop, Huggins Cams, BRODIX Heads, Barnes Oil Pumps, Prism Lubricants, Zeis Land Development, Butlerbuilt, Simpson, Winning With Wellness and WRT Web Designs.
Brandon at Lincoln Speedway (Loren Carman Photo)
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