The 4th Turn

~ By Tom Boggie

Even though it’s only Aug. 31, the modified point race at Lebanon Valley Speedway ended last Saturday because this Saturday’s Mr. Dirt Track USA race will only offer show-up points because it’s part of the Super DIRT Series (more on that later).

With his fourth-place finish at the Valley last Saturday, Brett Hearn won his seventh consecutive modified crown, and his 13^th overall, which is a pretty darn good percentage, taking into consideration that he’s only run fulltime at the Valley for 15 or 16 years since leaving Orange County Speedway.

Hearn winning the championship isn’t the surprise. The surprise is that Ronnie Johnson tied for second with Keith Flach.

I’ll be honest. When Johnson announced during the offseason that he was switching his Saturday night home from Fonda to Lebanon Valley, I thought he was making a big mistake. He grew up racing at Fonda, and is a two-time champion there. But, like his father, he’s his own man. He wants to run his own operation, and be the one who makes the decision.

I also didn’t know if he had the equipment to put in a full, strong season at Lebanon Valley. The Valley takes its toll on equipment, especially motors, and when you wreck at the Valley, the damage is sometimes substantial. So moving to the Valley was a big commitment for Johnson, his crew and his sponsors.

But I also knew if there was one driver who could make this move work, it was RJ. When others begin to doubt his ability, he becomes even more determined. Again, he’s a lot like his father.

Johnson hasn’t won a feature at the Valley this season (maybe he’s saving up his best effort for Saturday night’s Mr. DIRT Track USA race), but since opening night, when he ran sixth, he’s been incredibly consistent.

After 11 straight top 10 finishes, Johnson finished 11^th last Saturday, after blowing his right rear tire on lap 13. When Keith Flach passed Eddie Marshall on the final last to get his second win of the season, he and Johnson tied for second.

There was no learning curve for Johnson. He didn’t need one. Right from opening night, he was a threat every week, and the lessons he learned this year will only make him better next year.

Watch out, Brett. That streak of seven straight titles could be in serious jeopardy.

1. DIRT TRACK USA

What is always the highlight of the racing season at Lebanon Valley will generate even more excitement Saturday. With sponsorship from Amsterdam Trailer Repair, Mr. DIRT Track USA will pay $25,500 to win, the best payout for a 100-lap dirt modified race in the Northeast.

If this one is like the majority of other Super DIRT series races, it’s going to come down to a shootout between Stewart Friesen and Matt Sheppard.

But Hearn is the defending race champion,the newly crowned track champion and if there’s one thing The Jersey Jets really loves, it’s walking off with a bundle of promoter Howie Commander’s cash.

Activities at the speedway will get an early start, as the beer garden is scheduled to open at 2 p.m. and feature craft brews from both Donovan’s Craft Beer and Dwyer’s State Line Beer and Wine. In addition, there will be a DJ taking part in the festivities.

WHAT’S MY LINE

Normally, there are two preferred lines on a dirt track. One is very low, the other is very high.

If you’ve been to Albany-Saratoga Speedway this season, you’ve seen both work. Marc Johnson, who picked up his third win of the season last Friday, is a master at hugging the inside. If you want to see the outside line work, keep an eye on Bodie Bellinger. He tucks that right rear against the berm and lets it rip.

But last Friday, in the second modified feature, I watched Ken Tremont Jr. try to make a line – one that I have never seen befoire – work. Tremont would enter the first turn a lane off the bottom, drift to the top going into the second turn and then run the top down the backstretch.

After watching him run that line for a couple of laps, I knew he was losing momentum, and sure enough, Marc Johnson got by him of the inside in the closing laps of the race to get the win.

Tremont explained the unorthodox line.

“I didn’t want to get too high and mount the berm,” he said. “Me and the berm don’t get along so well. I saw Marc on the inside, but I didn’t know how much I was going to have to move around, so I kept doing what I was doing.”

I asked Johnson what he thought of Tremont’s line.

“I wasn’t going to complain,” he said with a smile.

FINAL NIGHT OF POINTS

Albany-Saratoga Speedway will be holding its final night of points (for modifieds, sportsman and street stocks) tonight, and will be running extra distance, double-point races for modified and sportsman.

Because of the rash of rainouts that have plagued the track this season, there was one night to be made up, and promoter Lyle DeVore let the drivers in the modified, sportsman and pro stock divisions vote last Friday to either run double features, or an extra-distance feature with an increased purse.

Both the modified and sportsman drivers voted for the extra distance. So the modifieds will run a 53-lap feature tonight (53 laps to commemorate the 53^rd season of racing at the track), paying $4,000 to win, while the sportsman will have a 40-lap feature, paying $1,000 to win. The pro stock drivers voted to run a pair of 15-lap features, and the card will also include a $1,000 to win Classic Muscle Parts Street Stock Spectacular.

In the modified division, Hearn leads Marc Johnson by 46 points. Tim Hartman Jr. leads Chris Johnson by 10 points in the sportsman division, and Kenny Martin Jr. has a 16-point lead over Jason Corbin in the pro stock division.

AROUND THE TRACKS

Hartman Jr. won last Sunday’s 602 crate modified feature at Glen Ridge Motorsports Park, his first win at The Ridge since July 15, ending Dave Constantino’s four-race winning streak. The bounty on Hartman and Constantino thus remains intact. According to the track’s Facebook page, the bounty will remain at $700 this week.

Tim LaDuc and Jake Scarborough split the Twin 20s at Devil’s Bowl last Sunday. LaDuc passed Mike Palmer on the last lap and got his bumper in front at the flagstand to get his first win of the season, while Scarborough sat in victory lane for the first time in his career.

Ronnie Johnson had an off night at Albany-Saratoga last Friday, finishing 14^th and seventh in the two modified features. His problems began in the first feature, when he spun out in the second turn. “I got spun around and think I bent something,” said Johnson as he emerged from underneath his car after his heat race before the second feature. “I’m trying to find it right now.”

Connor Cleveland’s hopes for the sportsman championship at Albany-Saratoga took a big hit last Friday when he broke early in the race and finished last in the 27-car field.

Peter Britten did a little R&D at Lebanon Valley last Saturday, getting in some time on the track before this weekend’s Mr. DIRT Track USA race.