C.E. Falk Wins Late Model Feature In Langley Opener

C.E. Falk, seen here from an earlier event, scored the Late Model victory Saturday at Langley Speedway. Photo by James Price

C.E. Falk grabbed the lead on the 71st circuit and rolled to the win in the Pomoco Auto Group 150 for the EZ Auto in Newport News Late Model Stock Cars as Langley Speedway in Hampton, VA kicked off its 63rd NASCAR Whelen All-American Series season on Saturday evening.

With a fresh layer of asphalt in place, the track record book took a beating during time trials. Nick Smith earned the pole with a lap at 92.990 mph, bettering Danny Edwards Jr.’s previous standard by almost half a second. Greg Edwards lined up on the outside pole, while Late Model newcomer Brenden “Butterbean” Queen and Dean Shiflett occupied Row 2. Falk launched from the fifth slot on the 16-car grid. In all, 12 drivers clocked in below the old qualifying mark, which had stood for three years.

As the race got under way, Smith jumped into the lead, while Greg Edwards settled into second. Behind them, Queen and Shiflett and Falk and Danny Edwards Jr. remained two-wide. On the second lap, Queen and Falk gained the advantage down low and took over third and fourth. A lap later, Falk overhauled Queen for third and set off after the top two, who had gotten away by a full straightaway.

While Falk chipped at the leaders’ margin, Edwards began to pressure Smith, drawing up on his rear bumper and sneaking peeks to the inside. Smith held him at bay, though, and, after dealing with slower traffic on laps 28 and 29, he broke into the clear with a four-length edge.

The first caution flag flew on lap 32 when Queen and Jeremy Grogg tangled off turn 2. Both drivers were able to continue.

On the restart, at lap 42, Smith quickly pulled ahead of Falk, who had opted for the outside lane. Edwards also bypassed Falk, who nestled back into the third position.
Only a couple more laps were completed when the second yellow flag appeared as Jeff Shiflett, running mid-pack, looped his machine in turn 1 and sent the back half of the field scrambling to avoid him.

Lining up for the ensuing restart, Falk again broke ranks and pulled alongside Smith. This time, he was able to stay on the leader’s flank until they reached the end of the backstretch. As Smith pulled away, Edwards rushed to fill the opening to Falk’s inside, clearing him off turn 4. Behind the lead trio, Jeff Oakley and Wes Falk, who had joined C.E. Falk on the top side, skittered up the track in turn 4. They were both able to catch their cars and avert a calamity.

Back at the front, C.E. Falk was on the move on lap 53, snagging the runner-up spot from Edwards on the backstretch. Smith seized on the opportunity and increased his lead to five lengths. Soon, though, Falk was filling his mirror.

Falk shadowed Smith until lap 71 when he pushed his machine to the front for the first time. He ducked underneath Smith out of Turn 2 and gained the position into turn 3. By lap 75, the halfway mark, Falk had opened a two-length lead over Smith, who had his hands full with a challenge from Edwards.

On lap 77, Edwards rooted Smith aside in turn 1 and grabbed second place. Caught to the high side, Smith also gave way to Matt Waltz and Danny Edwards Jr., falling to fifth. On lap 80, Edwards Jr. slipped past Waltz for third. A few laps later, Smith and Duane Shreeves also got the better of Waltz and dropped him from the top five.

The third caution flag waved on lap 92 when Shreeves spun toward the outside wall in turn 1. The mishap chased him to the sidelines for the night.

As the field prepared for a restart, to begin lap 102, Danny Edwards, Jr. gave up his third spot in line and pulled to the outside of Falk. He was joined up top by Wes Falk and Oakley.

Approaching the green flag, Edwards Jr. spun his tires off turn 4. The bobble allowed Falk to get away and caused a logjam in the outer lane. Heading down into the first corner, Wes Falk shot up the track and into the outside wall, bringing his effort to a sudden end. Edwards, Jr., meanwhile, headed for the pits with a flat right-rear tire.
Sorting out the lineup, C.E. Falk remained out front, followed by Greg Edwards. Smith had worked his way back into third, while Casey Wyatt and Oakley rounded out the top five.

On the restart, at lap 113, Falk motored ahead, while Smith took a run underneath Edwards through turns 1 and 2. Edwards regained command of the second spot on the back straightaway, though.

Smith wasn’t through, however, as he renewed the attack on lap 114 and came away with the position off turn 2 on lap 115. The shuffle allowed Falk to pad his lead to nearly half a straightaway.

Breaking free of his battle with Edwards, Smith was initially able to narrow the gap between himself and Falk somewhat. As the laps clicked by, though, the margin seemed to stabilize at five or six lengths. To make matters worse for Smith, Edwards was coming back to life and growing larger in his mirror.

The last of the race’s five caution flags was displayed on lap 125 when Oakley and Dean Shiflett spun in turn 2. Setting the running order, Falk was the leader, followed by Smith, Edwards, Queen, who had cycled back up to fourth, and Jeff Shiflett.

The final green flag flew with 16 to go and Falk led Smith and Edwards in a three-car breakaway at the head of the field. Smith stayed glued to Falk’s bumper for a handful of circuits before the leader began to ease away. As Falk drove off, Smith’s attention turned to Edwards, who was on the hunt for second.

The Smith/Edwards tussle in the closing laps played to Falk’s advantage as he cruised to a 0.564-second win, finishing about three lengths ahead of Smith. Edwards was third, followed by Queen and Wyatt. Jeff Shiflett headed the second five, in sixth, followed by Oakley and Dude Gibbs, the final driver to complete the entire distance. Waltz and Grogg were shown in ninth and 10th, two and three laps down, respectively.

In victory lane after the event, Falk was thrilled with a successful start to the new campaign.

“Tonight, that was great,” he said. “A lot of good cars. Y’know, Nick Smith and Greg Edwards, they’re tough customers and to come out ahead of a 150-lapper at Langley, that’s awesome. All my guys, they work so hard and get none of the glory, but we’re gonna get our picture taken here tonight, buddy.”

Asked about competing on Langley’s repaved surface, Falk described a white-knuckle ride.

“I swear, from lap 110 to the end, it was about 40 qualifying laps. We were way loose on restarts and I just knew, if I could hold on, the car would come to me and I was bombing ‘er in there as hard as I could. Just so happy for my guys and glad to start the season off right.”

Falk will have a couple weeks to enjoy his win as the Late Models are off next Saturday. They’ll return to action at Langley on Saturday, April 20.

In other action, John Pereira fought off a race-long challenge from Randy Akers and led from pole to checkers to win a 40-lapper for the Butterfoss & Barton Orthodontics Super Streets.

Continuing the theme of the evening, Pereira set a new record in qualifying, lapping the track at 77.943 mph and shaving four-tenths of a second off Ritchie German’s two year-old mark. Akers, Bill Eaker, Renno Marchetti IV, Landon Abbott and Sean Calway also bettered German’s standard.

On the start, Pereira grabbed the upper hand as the field rumbled into turn 1 for the first time. Akers dropped into second, while Marchetti nosed ahead of Eaker for third.

The race was slowed by caution flags on laps 3 and 4.

Back under green, Pereira and Akers bolted from the pack, while Calway, who had given up the sixth spot in line to restart to the outside of the leader, slid into third. Within a handful of circuits, the lead duo had opened a five-length margin over Calway, who was fighting to hold off Marchetti.

Marchetti finally made the move around Calway on lap 16. By then, however, the leaders were half a straightaway ahead. As Pereira and Akers jousted, though, Marchetti began to creep into the picture.

Nearing the finish, Pereira was still managing to keep Akers behind him, despite a few friendly raps on the rear bumper. Meanwhile, Marchetti had drawn to within two lengths of Akers.

Over the closing laps, Akers’ attention was divided between Pereira and Marchetti. Pereira used that to his advantage and pulled away to win by 0.426-second — about two lengths. Akers held off Marchetti to take second. Marchetti was third, followed by Calway and Eaker.

Defending division champ Robbie Davis sailed to the win in a 25-lap contest for the Larry King Law Super Trucks, leading all the way.

Davis claimed the pole for the event with, you guessed it, a new qualifying record — 79.035 mph. Davis’ effort trimmed over eight-tenths of a second off Brian Loving’s old record, which had stood since 2007. Bill Wallace, Chase McAdams and Jacob Carr also topped the former standard.

While Davis grabbed the lead on the start, McAdams quickly took over the second spot and zeroed in on the front-runner. McAdams lingered no more than a couple lengths back for the first 17 circuits. On lap 18, however, he suddenly slowed and turned toward the pits.

With McAdams on the sidelines, Davis found himself with a half-straightaway lead and he held that margin to the finish. Wallace was second to the line, followed by Carr. Chase McAdams and Fred McAdams were shown in fourth and fifth.

Post-race inspections shuffled the official rundown, however, as Wallace and Fred McAdams were disqualified. In the amended finishing order, Davis was still the winner, followed by Carr, Chase McAdams and Buck Munger.

In the 25-lap Cycle City Corp. INEX Legends feature, Brad Hancock led 24 circuits and held off Connor Hall at the stripe to score the win.

Hancock started from the pole, at 82.249 mph, over half a second better than the old division qualifying mark that he owned. Hall was second-fastest, only 3-thousandths of a second off the pace. Chris Hildebrand, Spencer Saunders and Tommy Jackson Jr. rounded out the top five on the grid.

The first two attempts at a start led to misadventures that whittled the field from 15 to 12 cars.

Under green for a third time, Hall surged out front and paced the opening lap. On lap 2, Hancock rallied and swept past Hall along the backstretch.

The race was slowed by two more caution flags, at laps 4 and 11, as Jackson, then Steve Keesee, had their engines erupt in spectacularly fiery fashion.

As the race resumed, it quickly became evident that Hancock, Hall and Saunders were the class of the field as they powered away from the pack.

Over the second half of the event, Hall continued to follow in Hancock’s tire tracks, taking an occasional look to the leader’s inside. He couldn’t muster a pass, though, as third-place Saunders lurked just off his bumper.

Exiting the final corner, Hall finally took a run at Hancock. He pulled alongside off turn 4 and nearly overtook the leader at the checkers. Hancock’s official margin of victory was a scant 27-thousandths of a second — little more than a foot. Saunders shadowed Hancock and Hall to the line, in third, followed by Chris Raiford and Chris Hildebrand.

Tim Wilson started on the pole, at 74.078 mph (another new record), and led all the way to capture the victory in the Carroll’s Automotive UCAR race. Due to a couple late-race caution flags, the event was extended from 25 to 26 laps to accommodate a “green-white-checkered” finish.

In the early going, with five laps completed, the race went under the red flag for nearly half a hour when Courtney Shiflett overturned in turn 4. While she was unhurt, rescue workers encountered some difficulty in extricating her from her upside-down machine and they took great care to gently turn the car back over with her still inside.

After the delay, Wilson resumed his march toward the win, quickly jumping out to a commanding lead. Jon Largena, who held down second place throughout the contest, was able to close the gap a bit, nearing the finish, but still trailed by five lengths. The second caution flag waved on lap 21.

Back under green, Wilson quickly regained a comfortable margin and was up by two car-lengths as the white flag went in the air. As he returned to the flagstand, however, Wilson was greeted by a yellow flag, not the checkers, setting up a two-lap sprint to the finish.
The first try at “green-white-checkers” went awry and the field bunched for another attempt.

On what would be the final restart, Largena manufactured his strongest bid to overtake the leader, driving low into the first corner. He came up empty, though, and Wilson set sail.
Sildigra ,a generic version of .Sildigra 50mg is used for treatment of men with erectile dysfunction, low sperm count, low sperm motility and premature ejaculation. The odours discount viagra pharmacy click for info now which they chose reminded them of their boyfriends. When you buy from us you don’t need a prescription to get them because there are no known side effects. Another thing to be remembered is that these medications have very few side effects. so people can easily use it by their wish erectile dysfunction problems increasing day by day and it levitra sales is better that you neglect alcohol because you once take it then get addicted to it or facing the side effects, and so on.
At the finish, Wilson was the winner by 0.582-second — about three lengths — over Largena. Kevin Morgan was third. Michael Joyner was fourth, but failed to clear the post-race inspection and was disqualified. Ronnie Vance was fourth in the official rundown, followed by Nick Gundacker.

In a 15-lapper for the Xtreme Mechanical Service INEX Bandoleros, Maddy Mulligan took the lead on the second circuit, pulled away to a commanding lead, then hung on at the end to notch the win.

Dashe McLaughlin started on the inside of row 1 after pole sitter Ryleigh Lemonds, who bettered her own record in Euro-style qualifying (68.303 mph), was unable to answer the bell for the feature. Trevor Wells flanked McLaughlin on the front row and took the lead on lap 1.

Mulligan, who started fourth on the reconfigured grid, moved up to second on the opening lap, then passed Wells for the lead in turn 1 on lap 2. Within a few laps, she had pulled away by nearly half a straightaway.

Over the second half of the event, Wells began to nibble at Mulligan’s advantage. The outcome still seemed to be a foregone conclusion, though, until Mulligan was momentarily stymied by a slower car in turns 3 and 4 on the final lap. Suddenly, Wells was right there.

Off the last corner, Mulligan managed to hold off Wells, winning by 0.195-second — a single car-length. Bradley Wilson was third and McLaughlin was fourth.

Langley Speedway is back in action on Saturday, April 6. Visit langley-speedway.com for more details.

Langley Speedway – Hampton, VA
Race Results – April 6, 2013

Late Models
1. (40) C.E. Falk
2. (77) Nick Smith
3. (97) Greg Edwards
4. (03) Brenden Queen
5. (92) Casey Wyatt
6. (01) Jeff Shiflett
7. (16) Jeff Oakley
8. (7) Dude Gibbs
9. (2) Matt Waltz
10. (83) Jeremy Grogg
11. (26) Danny Edwards, Jr.
12. (91) Justin Carroll
13. (12) Dean Shiflett
14. (41) Wes Falk
15. (38) Duane Shreeves
16. (55) Mark Wertz

Super Streets
1. (3) John Pereira
2. (21) Randy Akers
3. (01) Renno Marchetti IV
4. (12) Sean Calway
5. (22) Bill Eaker
6. (70) Landon Abbott
7. (11) Jeff Sweeney
8. (50) Jim Bennett
9. (1) Marty Tice
10. (2) Rod Busitzky
11. (24) Sammy Gaita
12. (50A)Michael Warren

Super Trucks
1. (17) Robbie Davis
2. (88) Jacob Carr
3. (62) Chase McAdams
4. (20) Buck Munger
DQ (19) Bill Wallace
DQ (22) Fred McAdams

INEX Legends
1. (10) Brad Hancock
2. (77) Connor Hall
3. (7) Spencer Saunders
4. (88) Chris Raiford
5. (71) Chris Hildebrand
6. (84) Colin Jareb
7. (18) Timmy Phipps
8. (18b)Andy Reeves
9. (2) D.J. Valente
10. (05) Joe White
11. (0) Steve Keesee
12. (87) Tommy Jackson, Jr.
13. (99) Sparky West
14. (98) Matt Morgan
15. (47) Sean Commo

UCars
1. (71) Tim Wilson
2. (88) Jon Largena
3. (11) Kevin Morgan
4. (32) Ronnie Vance
5. (09) Nick Gundacker
6. (3) Eric Schaffer
7. (41) Richard Ellis
8. (1) Denver Alvis
9. (8) Thomas Marks
10. (2) Michael Waters
11. (5) Jesse Jones IV
12. (10) John Matthews
13. (46) Jason Michaud
14. (7) Ashten Mullett
15. (73) Jason Vaught
16. (33) Mark Gomez
17. (36) Courtney Shiflett
18. (4) Nick Isidro
DQ (20) Michael Joyner