A Rough Night at Merrittville Has 6 Team Looking for Answers

By Dave Sully - (Thorold, Ontario) Another frustrating night at Merrittville, on July 28th, has the Williamson Racing Team scratching their collective heads as they continue to chase the set-up. If hard work were the answer, they would be contending every week, but in a class where the competition is so keen, being even a click off can mean running at the front to struggling in the middle, or worse.

On the surface, the eighth place finish doesn’t sound awful, but when the chief competition for the title, Pete Bicknell, finishes second, there is no cause for celebration. To have any shot at the title, Mat has to beat the 42 every night and hope for the best.

The night started okay, with Mat finishing third in his heat, which put him ninth on the starting grid. Things got worse at the drop of the green, as the car was tight and Mat struggled to hold onto it. Then, early in the race, he provide the drama for the evening when contact with the No. 38 coming out of turn four put him into the implement tires. The car got airborne, but Mat made an extraordinary save.

He explained, “I went into the corner on the bottom. He went in on the top and decided he wanted the bottom halfway through turn four there, and it put me into the tires. My left front climbed the tires and my right front climbed his left front tire. It got my front end in the air. I knew if I came down I was going to roll, so I kept my foot in it and cat-walked the front straightaway.”

When asked if the car was damaged as a result, he cracked wryly, “I was hoping it would have. It might have made the car a little better. We were no good until then.”

After that, it was bite and scratch for every spot. He had a prolonged battle with Shayne Pierce for eighth before finally prevailing, but it was another disappointing finish.

Mat declared, “From sixth to eighth to tenth to ninth. We’re not doing the right things and we’re not doing them at the right time. It was too tight to race. There’s nothing you can do when you’re tight like that. When you’re loose you can adjust the panhard bar. That’s some thing I can do, but when you’re tight like that, you’re kind of euchred the rest of the night.”

The team is down right now, but not out. They’ll keep working, and Mat will keep digging. That’s the name of the game.

Meet the Team- Ronnie Sumbler

Thirty-three year old Ronnie Sumbler, who lives in Ridgeway, is a five-year member of the Williamson Racing Team. His day job is with Scott’s Marine Interiors in Sherkston, a company that specializes in customized work on the inside of ships, with whom he has been employed for eleven years.

Ronnie explained, “We work on Navy boats, Coast Guard boats, Lakers that go through the canal, all sorts of fun things. We do everything on the inside of the vessel, from the bottom right up to the top. You either start from scratch or tear out old stuff and renew it, like new floors, new ceilings, or new walls.” He finds it very interesting and rewarding work.

He always enjoyed watching racing, but his perspective changed when he joined the team. He noted, “It looks easy when you’re sitting in the stands, but then you come over on this side (the pits), and you realize how much work goes into a car.”

His arrival on the team had an interesting twist. He observed, “Dipper was dating my girl friend’s mother at the time, and I just started hanging out, started working on cars with the guys, and I’m still here.”

As for his role on the team, Ronnie is like most of the others. “I try to help whoever needs assistance. If I get the chance, and I’m not working, I’ll go over and help Dipper change motors or anything else that is needed. Sometimes on Saturday mornings, when we’re racing Ransomville, I’ll come over and help Dipper wash the car and get it ready for Merrittville. Sometimes, during the week, I’ll go over and help him, if I get a chance. I don’t mind working on anything. Whatever needs to be done, I’ll do.”

Ronnie’s never gotten behind the wheel, as a number of the other team members have. He declared, “Maybe someday I’d like to try it, but it doesn’t look easy.”

He continued, “It’s my hobby. I really enjoy doing it. It sucks when you can’t do it when work gets in the way, but you’ve got to pay the bills. It’s a real good group of guys. Mat’s really matured over the years, as a driver and a person, a grownup. It’s fun.”

As for a high point in his career with the team, he admitted that he missed Mat’s first modified win, but he did see him win at Merrittville. He added, “Syracuse is fun. Every week is something to look forward to. I enjoy every Saturday.”

Speaking of Syracuse, Ronnie had a memorable experience there a few years back. He explained, “The first year I went, T-Mac (Terry MacNeil) and I were the ones involved in the big fire. We were working on filling up the quick-fill can. He pulled the funnel out of the carry can, and she went up. I was holding the funnel. He ran into the trailer to get a fire extinguisher and when he came out it was humongous. Finally, Dipper and a few others came over with extinguishers. I think the fire crew finally got there. It was pretty scary.” I guess you could call that a real “Baptism by Fire.”

As you can tell, Ronnie Sumbler is enjoying his experience as a member of the Williamson Racing Team and is another reason why the No. 6 is a force to be reckoned with each time it goes out on the track.

Mat Scratches Out Sixth at Merrittville

By Dave Sully  - (Thorold, Ontario) On a night when it seemed like everyone was very fast, moving forward was difficult at best. The Williamson Racing Team’s No. 6 car had a good start on the evening, with Mat finishing third in his heat after starting sixth. That finish earned him the tenth starting spot for the feature, outside point leader Pete Bicknell.

The feature turned into a race within a race for Mat. While Chad Chevalier set a blistering pace before ultimately succumbing to Scott Wood in lapped traffic late in the race, Mat and Pete staged an epic battle back in the field. It didn’t end until they reached the checkered flag, with Mat finishing sixth, edging Pete by one spot and snipping two points off of Pete’s eighteen point lead.

Mat and Pete swapped sixth and seventh several times during the intense event, as Mat vainly tried to make moves on fifth place finisher Tom Flannigan as well as racing Pete. That’s pretty heady stuff when you come right down to it.

Mat was satisfied with the finish, noting to crew chief “Dipper” Windeatt that everyone was fast tonight.

Commenting on the car, crewman Wayne Conn observed, “We just seemed to miss the setup tonight in regard to the shocks. We should have put on a certain type of shock and we didn’t, so instead of digging into the ground, we were sort of skimming off the top of the track.”

Normally Mat can adjust the car during a caution period. Wayne explained, “It didn’t help at all. We didn’t leave too much in terms of adjustment for Mat to do in the car, so pretty much what he had out there was what he had to work with.”

In spite of that, Wayne concluded, “Every night we can finish ahead of the 42 always helps.”

So, after a gritty performance by Mat in heavy traffic, the issue is still in doubt and there is still a long way to go in the championship hunt.

Strong Second Place Finish in the Winger Memorial at Merrittville Helps Salve the Wounds

By Dave Sully - (Thorold, Ontario) For a long time, it looked like that much-needed win was at hand for the Williamson Racing Team, as Mat grabbed the lead early and held it for 32 laps, but in the end a worn right rear tire and a pesky lap car proved to be his undoing, relegating him to second place finish in the Jerry Winger Memorial on Saturday, July 14th. Still in all, it was a strong performance for the No. 6 car and helped to ease the distractions of the last couple of weeks, giving the team some momentum to build on for the future. With Mat finishing two spots ahead of point leader, Pete Bicknell, he is still very much in the hunt for the coveted Merrittville title.

The night started well, as Mat dominated his heat after starting third. He then profited from the redraw, once again sitting third on the grid, behind polesitter Bill Bleich and Larry Lampman. A strong push at the drop of the green put Mat in second, as Lampman took control, but then Mat got a big break when Lampman chose the top on a lap three restart. Mat was able to get a great jump, and a slide job on Lampman in turn one put him in control.

Lampman kept the pressure on, and the two put on a crowd-pleasing duel, with Mat careening around the top, while Lampman hugged the bottom. Mat knew Larry was there, as he saw his nose virtually every lap. After holding him off on two restarts the right rear finally began to fade, and on lap 35, as the two came upon a lap car in turn four, Mat lost his momentum, and Larry was able to slide underneath. The quest for the win was essentially over.

Mat actually lost second to Travis Braun on lap 39, but regained it on a lap 44 restart and was able to come home with a hard-earned runner-up spot. Mat summarized the effort, noting, “We had a good race there. Larry picked the outside on the restart, and I got the benefit of that and got by him. I raced the car pretty hard. I saw him poking his nose in out of turn four every lap, so I had to go harder and harder. We went with a used tire instead of putting a new one on. We couldn’t get the stagger with the new one, so we risked it, and it ended up hurting us. We burned it up pretty good. I could feel it going away. I was better on the short runs, but I needed more cautions and less lap traffic. Larry was good tonight. Like I said, my tire went away and he just out drove me tonight. He was pushing. I could see him down on the bottom. I didn’t want to slow down and go to the bottom, but he just outraced me. I’m pretty happy though. We’ve had a rough couple weeks, so coming in second is pretty good.”

With the Friday night gig at Ransomville out of the picture, Mat is exploring other options, like different tracks and perhaps even different race cars. We’ll keep you posted.

Unfortunate Circumstances Put Ransomville in Team’s Rear View Mirror

By Dave Sully - (Ransomville, NY) After an on track incident during Mat’s heat race on Friday, July 6th, which precipitated a confrontation at the entrance to pit road that ultimately resulted in a physical altercation, the Williamson Racing Team has decided it is in its best interest to sever its connection to Ransomville Speedway.

After Mat was spun out in his heat, by a driver who felt that he was entitled to payback for being “chopped” earlier, the driver was sent tail. When the heat was over, the two cars stopped in the entrance to pit road where the altercation took place. Said altercation involved a track official, a track employee, and ultimately members of the Williamson team.

To be perfectly clear, Mat, in a fit of pique, did exit his race car to confront the other driver, which is against the rules, but the ensuing actions by the track official and the track employee, whose jobs would seem to be to mediate a dispute, ended up precipitating a brawl, not preventing one. If their purpose was to make a point, it had the effect of driving a tack with a sledge hammer, so one-sided was incident. By its very severity, other members of the team felt compelled to intercede, as did at least one member of another team.

When cooler heads finally prevailed, Mat and the other driver were sent home for the evening, thus no participation in the feature.

Car owner Rich Windeatt had a meeting with the track promoter, who expressed regret over what had transpired and promised appropriate action would be taken. Windeatt is confident that the track promoter will handle the situation with the efficacy it deserves to prevent a repeat of the unseemly incident and to retain confidence in the racing community that justice will be served, so that exciting racing will continue to be the norm at Ransomville Speedway.

However, since the incident was well beyond the realm of happenstance, and overtly provocative, the Williamson Racing Team has opted to suspend its racing commitment to Ransomville at this time.

Third Place Finish At Merrittville Helps to Soften the Mood

By Dave Sully - (Thorold, Ontario) After the histrionics on Friday at Ransomville, a good performance, with a solid finish, was sorely needed at Merrittvfille on Saturday, July 7th, and it was delivered in the form of a hard-earned third place. Travis Braun took the lead from the pole and literally checked out on the field, leaving Mat pedaling as hard as he could to improve on his sixth place starting spot, courtesy of a third place finish in his heat.

The car leaped forward at the start, with Mat grabbing third after only four laps. Even though he got to third quickly, he had plenty of work to do, as Braun was already gone, and Tom Flannigan, who started in front of Mat on the outside of row 2, had built up a substantial lead on him as well.

With the race going caution-free, there was no catching Braun, but Mat kept pecking away and drew within haling distance before time ran out, and he settled for third, once spot ahead of point leader Pete Bicknell, who made Mat’s life interesting for a number of laps, but couldn’t get a good enough run challenge for the position.

About whether he would have wanted a caution, Mat was ambivalent, noting, “You do and you don’t in that situation, I don’t know if I would have been faster than Travis. He was on a rail tonight.”

Of the race, he added, “We stuck too much gear in it and hit the chip way too early. That doesn’t help. It was a decent night. It’s a brand new Bicknell car. Coming in third feels good. The outside was fast. When Travis and Shayne (Pierce), did a switch up in turn two there, it was Travis, Tom, and I running the outside. We were a third place car tonight. I saw Pete poking his nose in at the end. I stayed on the outside. If I changed lanes he would have gone around me. I’ve made that mistake too many times.”

He concluded, “It’s nice to hold him off, but we really need a win. These guys (the crew) work their butts off. Hopefully, I can give it to them.”

So, the weekend concludes on a high note, and the team goes on from there.

“Battle of the Border” Produces Top Ten Finish

By Dave Sully - (Ransomville, NY) On Tuesday, July 3rd, the Williamson Racing Team traveled to nearby Ransomville Speedway for the $5,000 to win “Battle of the Border,” which this year took on added prominence, as it was dubbed a 358 Modified Series event as well. Things started out well, as Mat set fast time in hot laps, time trialed fastest in his group, had a good starting spot in his heat and wound up winning it going away. That put him into the redraw, an area that has not been kind to Mat so far this season. After drawing No. 11 at the last series event at Mohawk, Mat once again drew the eleventh starting spot, putting him at an immediate disadvantage.

In the 75 lap feature, try as he might Mat wasn’t able to make much progress against the stout field and ended up finishing tenth, but beating some good cars, like Pat Ward, Alan Johnson, and Dale Planck, among others, in the process.

Mat described his night, noting, “We started eleventh, got stuck behind some junk and then went backwards, but we ended up tenth. It was similar to what happened at Mohawk. We were racing behind some people who don’t use their heads or show the same respect that these guys here have. It was a good race. We would have been a top five car, but we were behind Matt Billings, and he was all over the place. We were behind him about forty laps or so. Every time I went to go around him, he put me in the moat. When I tried to go under him, he put me on the infield. If we could have drawn a better number and started further up, we would have been better. It is what it is.”

Regarding the overall picture, he added, “It’s a little frustrating to be experimenting and not going anywhere. We tried some different stuff on Tuesday night. We thought the track was going to get looser than what it was, and we were a little tight.”

So, it’s back to the drawing board, once again, with a lot of racing still to go.

 

On the Road With the Williamson Racing Team

By Dave Sully - On Thursday, June 21st, I was privileged to be a part of the Williamson Racing Team’s six hour sojourn north to Mohawk International Speedway in Hogansburg, NY, for the Dirtcar 358 Super Dirt Series race. Though the result of the race was disappointing, after being in the hunt for the win, it was an enjoyable and interesting experience, which I’d like to share with you.

The final preparation for the trip started on Wednesday night, when the team checked the car over from stem to stern, including every nut and bolt. Then it was loaded into the hauler, with an array of spare parts and tires. Dipper (crew chief Rich Windeatt) noted that when they travel a long distance, extra tires and a spare transmission are added to the ample supply of spare parts already on board. There are enough parts in the trailer to virtually rebuild the car, if necessary, barring a catastrophe. The trip commenced the following morning from Dipper’s Ft. Erie shop.

Because of the distance to Hogansburg, which is near the Wellesley Island Bridge to Canada in the Thousand Islands, an early departure was in order to arrive comfortably before the pit gate opened, which is a Dipper requirement. He led the charge, arising at the tender hour of five-thirty to make final preparations.

At 7:10, Rob Sawatsky arrived (ten minutes late by Dipper time) and the two left for the Peace Bridge. Upon clearing customs, they headed for Exit 52 on the New York State Thruway to pick me up. At 8:05 they arrived at Jim’s Truck Stop where I was waiting, having been delivered there by my wife Marcia from my home in the Southtowns.

We then set out for one of Dipper’s favorite eateries, the Boston Hotel, on Genesee Street near Dunn Tire Raceway Park in Lancaster, where we picked up Mat and Randy Williamson. They had arrived in the family truck, which would remain there and be picked up on the way back.

From there we set sail for the track, using Rt. 33 (Genesee St) to Rt. 77 and then onto the Thruway at Exit 48. Mat used the time to get a much-needed nap. The route to Hogansburg took us to I-81 in Syracuse to Watertown, where we stopped for lunch at Buffalo Wild Wings. We also made a stop at Walmart for ice, beverages, other supplies, and a pair of shorts for Randy, who forgot that the temperature that day was going to approach 90 degrees Fahrenheit and hadn’t packed for that eventuality. The entire ride was peppered with racing war stories, and busting each other’s chops, which was very entertaining and made the time go by quickly.

After the 30 minute stop, we continued on, using Rt. 37, which took us to the Akwasasne Reservation, where the track, formerly known as Frogtown, is located, pulling in at 3:05PM. We were the second team to arrive, followed shortly thereafter by the Travis Braun Team, with whom we exchanged pleasantries until the gate opened at 4:00PM. As we waited, another team from our area arrived, that of driver Erick Rudolph.

At precisely four o’clock, we were allowed to sign in and were able to pick a parking spot to our liking, near the entrance to the track. After getting settled, the car was unloaded and immediately jacked up, to be checked and adjusted. Also, different gears were installed, since there hadn’t been time to do that the night before.

Changing gears may sound daunting, but with what is known as a “quick-change” setup, it only takes a few minutes to accomplish the task, Every team carries several sets of gears to conform to the various conditions that can be encountered at different race tracks, with variables like track length, configuration, probable track surface conditions such as hard, dry, slick, or tacky, and also driving style for the type of setup being employed. It’s also possible that they could be changed after hot laps and/or the heat as well, if deemed necessary.

Tire choice is also critical, with several different compounds to choose from, depending on what the crew thinks the track will be like at race time and how it may change. Generally, the slicker the race track, the harder the tire. For those into numbers, the tires used are D 200, D300, D400, and the hardest, the D500, which is used at Syracuse.

Stagger is also a critical issue. Stagger, which allows the car to roll through the turns without losing momentum, is determined by tire size on the right and left, plus air pressure. The crew also has to predict how much a tire will expand when it gets heat into it, because that will change the stagger during the race. When you hear a driver say, “When the tires came in, I could go faster,” that’s often what they are referring to.

While the car was being prepped, Randy, who, as the co-owner of Bicknell Racing Products, offers technical support to his customers, was busy offering advice to other drivers who were arriving to race and had questions about their BRP mounts. It is the nature of the business to offer assistance, even though it’s like providing aid and comfort to the enemy. Though he clearly wants Mat to win, it sometimes puts Randy in an unenviable position. Even though it’s a necessary evil and Mat understands it, he finds in unnerving to watch as his father counsels the opposition on how to make their cars run better.

With time trials scheduled for 7:00, there was plenty of time to get the lay of the land. I was able to locate a spot to watch the race, as I was also covering it for Area Auto Racing News, my major media connection. Fortunately, I was able to arrange for a spot in an air-conditioned room in the grandstand tower next to the officials’ booth to watch the race. Fortuitously, they also had food.

Mat had time to chat with fellow drivers, while Dipper and Rob found food at the concession stands, checked out the race track, and socialized with other teams and officials, including Rich Lemieux, who is a tech inspector for Ransomville, Merrittville, and DIRTcar, and was assigned to this race.

At precisely 7:00PM, hot laps commenced. Modified hot laps followed the pro stocks and Mat made his appearance. When he finished, the crew had a short time to make some adjustments, based on what they observed and what Mat told them. Shortly after that, time trials were held.

Rather than the former method of having each car alone on the track, which was time consuming, the cars now come out in groups of five or six, spread around the race track. When they are given the green flag, they run two laps, which are electronically recorded. The purpose of the time trials is to set the grid for the heats, with the fastest cars starting up front. Mat ended up fourth overall in his time trial group, which meant he would start on the outside in the second row in his heat.

Later in the evening, after other classes ran their heats and the Mod Lites ran their feature, the mod heats were contested, with Mat finishing 3rd, putting him into the all important redraw, where the top three in each heat determine their starting position. They select an item, sometimes a Frisbee, sometimes a pop can, sometimes a hat, or something else, which has a number from 1- 12 hidden on it. Mat wound up with starting spot eleven.

The race, as you can read about elsewhere on this site, was going swimmingly for Mat, as he moved up after dropping back early, took second and was lining up a challenge to eventual winner Billy Dunn, when the night suddenly ended on lap 56. A vibration in the engine forced Mat to shut it down before doing more damage. Because it was a high attrition race, Mat officially finished fourteenth out of the thirty car starting field.

As expected, Mat was bitterly disappointed, while the rest of the team tried to figure out what might have gone wrong. There was nothing left to do but load the car, pack the gear and start for home. The hauler was on the road at 12:05AM, very late for anyone who had to work the next day, because the track chose to run four classes, in addition to the 75 lapper for the Modifieds.

There was not a lot of banter, given the circumstances of the race, and the fatigue factor of a long day. We pulled into the Econo Lodge in Watertown at 2:25AM where we spent the night. We were back on the road at 8:45, and after a stop for a late breakfast in Waterloo, arrived back in the Buffalo area at around 1:00. We stopped to pick up the Williamson vehicle, and while Dipper and Rob headed back to Canada with the hauler, Mat and Randy dropped me off at the truck stop, where my wife picked me up to end my part of the trip. Mat and Randy headed home, and we all re-convened at Ransomville that afternoon.

All in all, the trip was fun for me, sharing in the camaraderie of the group, and though I always knew how much hard work goes into a racing effort, I left with renewed respect for everyone on the team, who work selflessly for a common goal- winning.

CHECK OUT OUR PHOTO GALLERY ON MATWILLIAMSON.COM FOR PHOTOS FROM THIS TRIP, AND MORE!!

A Top Five at Humberstone Completes Busy Weekend

By Dave Sully - (Pt Colborne, Ontario) After debuting a brand new car on Saturday, which produced a sixth place finish, the team continued to chase the setup on Sunday at the Canada Day Modified event at Humberstone on Sunday, July 1st. After qualifying for the Outlaw Redraw (where each driver must give the position they draw to another driver), he ended up starting sixth.

While action was fast and furious around him, in dusty conditions, Mat tinkered as much as he could, but in the end he was able to gain only one position, finishing fifth, after a spirited battle for fourth with Tom Flannigan, who was able to prevail for the spot running on the outside.

It was a case of trying to dial the car in for the next serious test, the “Battle of the Border, at Ransomville on Tuesday, July 3rd, which is also a 358 Modified Series event. Since no points were involved at Humberstone, the team chose to look at the big picture.

Mat, sounding somewhat frustrated, noted, “It’s part of experimenting. Sometimes you hit the nail on the head; some times you’ve got to experiment a little bit. We’ll get it. I can’t step on the gas like these guys can. They just drive off like nobody else can. We’re getting beat somewhere, and we’re going to have to figure it out. It was a top five car tonight. That’s for sure. It’s just little stuff. I know we’ll get it. There’s no doubt about that.”

Of the race, where he ran low most of the night, he added, “I knew the top was faster in three and four. That’s where they were getting me. I could get them in one and two, but they’d get me better in three and four.”

Regarding his duel with Flannigan, with Mat hugging the bottom, he noted, “That was good side by side racing for sure.”

Despite running a grueling three races in three days, with a 75 lapper scheduled on Tuesday, Mat noted optimistically, “No Problem. We’ll be ready.”

Sixth Place Finish at Merrittville Keeps Mat in the Hunt

By Dave Sully - (Thorold, Ontario) There was a brand new No. 6 car on the track at Merrittville on Saturday, June 30th, and like all new cars, there is going to be a feeling out process. The result was a hard earned and sometimes bizarre sixth place finish, which kept the team in the point chase, but probably too early to be concentrating on that aspect.

After a second place finish in his heat, Mat started eleventh on the grid, next to point leader Pete Bicknell. The car was pretty good early, with Mat moving up a few spots in the intense battle, but then he, figuratively, hit a wall, and couldn’t get any further. From there it was biting and clawing for every position.

Two debatable calls on restarts put Mat a further disadvantage (Mat suggested that they went back to the position on the previous lap to line up the cars, something that they haven’t done in quite a while), placing him behind cars he felt he had cleared before the yellow flew. Mat stayed with it, however, trying to make adjustments under yellow. When it appeared he was going to finish eighth or worse, he got a big break, courtesy of Chad Chevalier and Travis Braun, who got locked together on lap 15, bringing out the caution and moving Mat to sixth for the restart. From there, he was able to protect the spot over the rest of the race.

Talking about the night, Mat observed, “There were some minor details with the new car. The throttle was either on or off, so we have to fix that for tomorrow. Little things like that can make or break a race. We weren’t a winning car. You have to take them as you get them. We were good at first and then kind of faded. I made some adjustments, but they didn’t help as much as they should have. It’s back to the drawing board tomorrow.”

Regarding the point race, Mat is taking a broadened approach, noting, “I not worrying about point racing right now. We’re going for the “W. If we’re the best car, the point championship will come. I’m going to stop looking at it (the point race).”

There’s no time to fret, because the team is back at it on Sunday at Humberstone and Tuesday at Ransomville for the Battle of the Border, where they hope to turn things around.

Strong Finish at Ransomville Rekindles Confidence

By Dave Sully (Ransomville, NY) After what can be described as a weekend of frustration, the spring was back in the steps of Mat and the crew after an impressive second place finish to Danny Johnson at Ransomville on Friday, June 29th. The car was good from the start and the driver was up on the wheel, using some savvy moves to claim the runner-up spot in the 30 lap feature.

Upon finishing third in his heat after starting sixth, he was slotted ninth on the grid for the feature. While Dave Just bolted to the front, the rest of the field vied for positions, with Mat on the move early. On lap five, with Mat already up to fifth, he just managed to avoid a massive pile-up precipitated when a pack of fast cars descended on the slow running No. 12J. When the smoke cleared, Mat, thankfully, had only some bent sheet metal, while Todd Burley and Robbie Krull went off on the hook.

When the race resumed, Danny Johnson, who started fifth due to a DNF the previous week, took second by lap 7 and took the lead on lap 12, while Mat was on a run of his own, taking third, by lap nine and then working around Just into second on lap 18. He was joined there by Chad Brachmann, who had powered up from eighteenth to challenge.

While Johnson drove away at the front, Chad engaged Mat for second. He explained, “I saw Chad under me a couple times, and I knew we were coming up on some lap cars, so I kind of made the car wide. I knew if I didn’t protect the bottom he’d get me down there going into three and sliding out of four, so I got up on the lap cars and just rode along beside them, because I knew there was no going around me, just under me. It was good.”

Mat used the lap cars to keep Brachmann at bay over the final laps and was satisfied with the result. “It was great to come back after last weekend,” Mat declared.

Mat had some moments with Johnson on the lap five restart, but the master prevailed. Mat observed, “I was running fifth at the time and Danny was third. I knew I had a good row. We both tried to go under the 8 car at the same time. I got under him and tried to move him out of the way. He’s too smart to play those games and didn’t move. That was the problem. He was faster than I was, but I think I could have held him off.”

He concluded, “It’s an honor to race with Danny. I love racing with him, because I learn something every time.”

Sixth Place Finish at Merrittville Doesn’t Sit Well

By Dave Sully  - (Thorold, Ontario) Maybe it was the frustration of the disappointing conclusion at Mohawk on Thursday, or the struggle at Ransomville on Friday to salvage a decent finish, but the sixth place finish at Merrittville on Saturday, in the race won by point leader Pet Bicknell, didn’t Mat’s help demeanor following the event.

For the record, Mat started eighth and immediately went backward, similar to the previous night at the Big R. After falling back to around fourteenth, a caution came out on lap 7, allowing Mat to make some adjustments to right the ship and he began to claw his way forward. Another yellow flag on lap 15 allowed for more tinkering, and by the time the next caution flew on lap 28, he was up to eighth and seemed ready to challenge.

Up front, a barn burner was developing between Pete Bicknell, Tom Flannigan, and Tim Jones. Mat got a great restart and, hugging the bottom, he actually nosed into fourth for a short time before being shuffled back.

A final caution on lap 34 became the particular source of Mat’s ire, as it appeared he was in 5th when the yellow flew, but he was placed sixth on the restart behind the 71. There were no position changes in the one lap dash, and Mat ended up sixth, when he felt strongly that he should have been fifth. In a tight point race, where even one point can mean a position in the standings, perhaps even a title, any perceived indiscretion can be disheartening.

Mat reacted to that and opened a can of worms on some other issues. “We had that caution there and drove like mad over the last couple laps. We would have been a top five car, but for the guy up in the tower making all the calls. On the last restart I was blatantly in front of the 71. It showed it on the board. The caution came out going into one, and I slowed down for the yellow, and the 71 didn’t. They put me behind him. If it comes down to racing under the yellow, some people are going to get hurt. That’s what it takes. (It seems like) Every call that he makes is against me.”

Each race night, calls have to be made based on the perception of the officials running the event. Intent versus “One of them racin’ deals” is often a hard thing to decipher. Sometimes intentional wrong-doing is obvious, and the call is easy.

Not everyone is going to agree with every call. Every driver, at some point, feels that the scales of justice are tilted in the wrong direction. When families are involved, the situation can be exacerbated even more. Hopefully the events of the past won’t cloud the future, as there are a lot of races left, and neither Mat nor the team can afford any unnecessary distractions.