Bedford Speedway
Frank drives snazzy Chubzilla car to victory
By Kevin Kovac
World of Outlaws Late Model Series
Chub Frank won his sixth WoO event of 2007. (Barry Lenhart)
BEDFORD, Pa. (Sept. 21) — Chubzilla ate up the competition at Bedford Speedway. Driving a uniquely-wrapped, green-and-white car themed to his popular nickname, Chub Frank emerged victorious in the half-mile fairgrounds oval’s first-ever World of Outlaws Late Model Series event. | Slideshow
Frank’s triumph in the Bedford 50 came in his first appearance with the Chubzilla machine since its ballyhooed debut two weeks earlier in the World 100 at Eldora Speedway in Rossburg, Ohio — a weekend that was a smashing success for Frank on the merchandising side (he sold out of T-shirts and diecast cars), but a disappointing failure on the racing end (he failed to qualify after hitting the wall hard on the final lap of his heat race).
“Tonight was a lot better than the World,” understated Frank, smiling broadly after earning $10,225 for his WoO-leading sixth victory of 2007. “The World wasn’t a good deal, so we decided we’d run this body again closer to home and see if we could come up with some better results.”
Frank, 45, of Bear Lake, Pa., accomplished his competitive goal — and sold a few more T-shirts in the process. He moved up from the third starting spot to inherit the lead on lap 16 when Bo Feathers of Winchester, Va., retired with mechanical trouble, then outran Jeremy Miller of Gettysburg, Pa., for the remainder of the distance in his Lester Buildings Rocket.
A run-in with a lapped car gave Frank a scare with just three laps left, but Miller couldn’t take advantage of Frank’s momentary loss of momentum.
Miller, 36, settled for second place in the Buckler Motorsports Rocket, about six lengths behind Frank at the checkered flag. It was Miller’s career-best series outing, surpassing his fourth-place run on July 28 at Sharon Speedway in Hartford, Ohio.
Leading WoO rookie contender Tim Fuller of Watertown, N.Y., advanced from the ninth starting spot to finish third followed by 12th-starting Clint Smith of Senoia, Ga., and Rick Eckert of York, Pa. Darrell Lanigan of Union, Ky., tumbled from third to sixth on the final lap thanks to a flat right-rear tire that caused him to limp across the finish line, while WoO points leader Steve Francis of Ashland, Ky., finished seventh — and maintained a 40-point edge over Frank — despite being hampered by a leaking rearend assembly and a flapping hood that partially obstructed his vision.
Frank had no problems with his repaired car, which sports a body that features reptile-like scales and Day-Glo monster eyes for headlights.
“This car has been good to us all year no matter what we do to it,” said Frank, who has been behind the wheel of the mount for five of his six WoO wins this season. “It’s been bent three times, including at the World. We had to straighten the front and back clips after the World, but it’s still going strong.”
Frank paused, and then slyly added, “I’d have to say this car probably won’t get sold unless somebody really, really wants it.”
Feathers provided Frank a stern test early in the main event. The Virginian, who bolted into the lead from the outside pole at the initial green flag, lost the top spot to Frank on lap nine but grabbed it right back on the 11th circuit.
Running the outside groove kept Feathers ahead of Frank until the 15th lap, when terminal mechanical woes caused him to stop in turn two and bring out the race’s first caution flag.
“That was a good race, fun racing,” Frank said of his battle with Feathers. “I could dive in the corner and get all the way up too him, but I knew he was gonna come off that top and beat me down the straightaway.
“He really wanted that top bad enough, and I let him have it. I didn’t figure that top would last, so I didn’t force the issue (to make an early pass). We really didn’t get a chance to find out if the top would last because (Feathers) broke, but I think the inside would’ve eventually gotten better than the top.”
Caution flags on laps 24 (for Dave Troutman’s stopped car) and 26 (for a turn-four spin by D.J. Myers) gave Miller, who started fifth, a shot at the lead. But Frank pulled away on each restart and was never seriously threatened by Miller on open track.
Frank’s march to the 13th WoO victory of his career nearly ended on lap 47, however, when he had some trouble lapping Ricky Elliott of Seaford, Del.
“I was underneath him and he just turned left down the straightaway,” said Frank, whose last win at Bedford came in 2000. “I had to turn right and then drive into him, because if I’d have turned left we would’ve both spun out.
“We both just went straight into the corner. I was trying to go straight and brake at the same time so I didn’t slide up the racetrack anymore than I had to.
“I really lost all my speed, but luckily I had enough of a lead that Jeremy couldn’t pass us.”
Miller saw the opening that Frank left, but he couldn’t get his car through it fast enough.
“I would’ve had to have been right on him to get by him,” said Miller, who led 43 laps of the July 28 event at Sharon before being passed for the win by Frank. “I could’ve just kept my foot in it and knocked him out of the way, but that wouldn’t have been good. He helps me enough that I wasn’t gonna force it past him. I don’t race that way.”
Miller was satisfied with a $5,625 runner-up finish. “I’m super happy,” said Miller, who has two career wins in limited appearances at Bedford. “Running second to Chub? There’s no shame in that. It’s happened to a lot of other people.
“He was just better than us. I felt like our traction was the same, but he could rotate the corner better than I could. He could get on the gas sooner than I could. I had to drive my car a little more crooked, and I probably hurt the right-rear tire a little more.”
Fuller, 39, made his moves early, using the outside line to reach third by lap 18. He challenged Miller a couple times but lost ground as the race wore on and actually was passed on lap 47 for third by Lanigan, who gave the position right back to Fuller on the final circuit when his car’s bald right-rear tire finally popped.
“We made some moves before the track took some rubber and got harder to pass on,” said Fuller. “I didn’t have anything for Chub or Jeremy, but it didn’t help that my left-rear tire gave up toward the end. It was just about bald.”
Notebook
WoO competitors visit Pittsburgh’s Pennsylvania Motor Speedway for the 19th annual Pittsburgher event on Sept. 22. ... Bedford enjoyed its biggest crowd of the season for its finale. ... Steve Francis lowered the track record with a 19.961-second lap.
