“I really think I drove harder tonight than I have in years.”
That’s how Burt Myers summed up Saturday night’s FOX8 WGHP 100 for the Brad’s Golf Cars Modified Series. Myers left with the checkered, but it took all he had to earn it.
The night started off with Myers opting not to take the Fans’ Challenge – which would have him starting in the rear for a chance to make $6,000 if he made it back up to a top-four finish. However, the Fans’ Challenge was accepted by James Civali of Davidson, Brandon Ward of Winston-Salem, and fastest qualifier Lee Jeffreys of Wallburg.
When the competitors drew randomly for starting position, Myers drew fifth. John Smith of Mount Airy started on the pole – but an early caution gave Myers the opportunity to move to the outside row. It took Myers several laps of working slowly around John Smith from the outside, but eventually the 1 car of Myers moved into the lead.
Lapped traffic from Myers’ own team unintentionally blocked him, allowing John Smith to reclaim the lead on lap 23. But the next caution saw Myers head to the outside again – taking the top spot back from Smith.
A flurry of cautions over the next few laps put Myers to the test as he defended his position against the repeated challenges from Smith. But Myers’s greatest challenge came when Joseph “Bobo” Brown made his way up to second.
One week prior, Jason Myers (brother to Burt Myers) had tangled with Jonathan Brown (brother to Joseph Brown). The two sets of brothers have a long history of rivalry at the Stadium, so all eyes were on Joseph Brown and Burt Myers as they prepared to battle for the lead.
Joseph Brown’s car seemed stout, and he gave Myers a handful as they fought double-file. After falling back to second, Brown delivered some stiff shots to the bumper of Myers. The crowd roared as Myers slid through the turns, steering back into the groove and maintaining the lead.
Joseph Brown fell back, with Tim Brown of Tobaccoville taking over second. After an unsuccessful outside row challenge from Tim Brown, James Civali took over second place behind Myers’s bumper. Civali couldn’t shake Myers either.
Myers ended up claiming the checkered after an exhausting 100-lapper, his fifth win of the season. “They call it the greatest show on Earth. I’ve been coming over here a long time, and I’ve been through just about every scenario possible,” said Myers. “We didn’t know what to expect coming into tonight. We knew we didn’t have anything to do with the drama that’s been going on, but you also can’t control other people’s actions.”
“I was just trying to keep it pointed straight,” said Myers about the shots from Joseph Brown on his rear bumper. “I about didn’t – just trying to go and get away and get going.”
“You have 10 good restarts – all it takes is one bad one there with a handful of laps to go – and you lose the race,” said Myers. “Every time there’s a caution it’s like someone dumps a bucket of dirt on the inside. Everything plays into the fact that you have to be perfect every time. I don’t care who you are – being perfect every time is not easy. And I about gave it away a couple times, and a couple times I got a really good start. It’s just one of those nights where you really just hunker down. I just gritted my teeth and went after it – and we came out on top.”
While Civali didn’t take the checkered, he did have reasons to celebrate – 6,000 reasons. Finishing in the top four earned him the $6,000 Fans’ Challenge bonus. “I made some big moves and got restarts – I drove pretty hard, pretty aggressive,” said Civali. “This was absolutely the best the car has been on a hundred lap race.”
“I was actually pushing Burt coming to the green,” said Civali about the final restart as he fought Myers for the lead. “The carburetor loaded up, and it skipped all the way down the straight away. He just pulled away. Once you get a car-length in front of me, I can’t stay with him – that’s just the way it works here.”
In the McDowell Heating & Air Sportsman Series, Amber Lynn of Walkertown took the checkered after holding off former champ Tommy Neal of Walkertown. Dylan Ward of Winston-Salem adds again to his win total – this time for claiming victory in the second Sportsman race.
Jacob Creed of Dobson and father David Creed of Mount Airy finished first and second in the 20-lap race for the Law Offices of John Barrow Street Stock Series. And in the Q104.1 Stadium Stock Series, both Brandon Brendle and Billy Cameron Jr. each brought home a win.
BGS Racing PR
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