Bedford Speedway
Fog-shortened Bedford event goes to Francis
By James Essex
Lucas Oil Late Model Dirt Series
Francis waves to the Bedford crowd. (pbase.com/cyberslash)
BEDFORD, Pa. (July 31) — Steve Francis of Ashland, Ky., led all 24 laps of a fog-shortened race at Bedford Speedway for a $7,000 victory on the Lucas Oil Late Model Dirt Series. On a night when a rain delay had already delayed racing two hours, the checkered flag was dropped six laps before the scheduled end of the inaugural Paul Beamer Memorial at the half-mile fairgrounds oval. | Slideshow
Francis applauded officials for calling the with safety in mind as fog that began rolling in midway through the race began hampering the vision of racers. "No doubt it was the right call," Francis said. "It's easy for me to say being in front, but when the second-place guy and back says they can't see, you have to go with that."
Series points leader Earl Pearson Jr. continued a string of strong runs with a second-place finish. Polesitter and fast qualifier Josh Richards of Shinnston, W.Va., was third while home-state drivers Jeremy Miller of Gettysburg and Rick Eckert of York rounded out the top five in a race that ended about 1:30 a.m.
A pop-up shower during a consolation race forced an extra two hours to get the track surface back into shape, but Francis was ready when the green flag flew and got the jump on the polesitting Richards. He eased away to a comfortable lead until lapped traffic allowed Richards and Pearson to close up after 10 laps.
Francis again pulled away following a lap-12 caution while Pearson turned up the heat on Richards for second. Fog was already rolling in by the time Jeff Rine rolled to a stop to draw a lap-20 caution, and four laps later, Nick Dickson stopped in turn two for another yellow. During the caution period, the drivers stopped on the frontstretch and relayed to series and track officials that it was unsafe to continue racing.
Notes: Francis drove a Dale Beitler-owned Rocket Chassis powered by a Cornett engine and sponsored by Reliable Painting, Duralite Racing Wheels, Integra Shocks and Valvoline. ... Francis previously won on the series July 1, 2007, at Portsmouth (Ohio) Raceway Park not far from his Ashland, Ky., home. ... Third-starting Bart Hartman slowed on the first attempted start to draw a caution and headed for the pits; he didn't return to the track until the 12th lap. ... When rain struck during the second consolation race, Alan Sagi slid up and made hard contact with an outside tire barrier. He was taken to a nearby hospital and the team website later reported he suffered a broken wrist, broken shoulder blade and broken rib. ... The Lucas Oil event was a makeup from an April 25 rainout. ... The Lucas Oil regulars continue the weekend with Aug. 1-2 events at Winchester (Va.) Speedway and Hagerstown (Md.) Speedway.
Lucas Oil @ Bedford: (1) Steve Francis, (2) Earl Pearson Jr., (3) Josh Richards, (4) Jeremy Miller, (5) Rick Eckert, (6) Steve Shaver, (7) Terry Casey, (8) Ricky Elliott, (9) Billy Drake, (10) Steve Casebolt, (11) Donnie Moran, (12) Scott Haus, (13) Jason Covert, (14) Chuck Clise, (15) Gary Stuhler, (16) Scott James, (17) Jeff Miller, (18) Nick Dickson, (19) Dan Stone, (20) Jeff Rine, (21) Justin Rattliff, (22) Tyler Hershey, (23) Jack Pencil, (24) Steve Everhart, (25) Freddy Smith, (26) Bart Hartman. Fast qualifier (among 51 cars): Richards, 20.223 seconds. Heat race winners: Richards, Eckert, Francis, Hartman. Consolation winners: Stuhler, Jeff Miller. Provisional starters: James, F. Smith, Everhart, Hershey.
