RPW Column: As Graduation Looms, OCFS Sportsman Rookies Have Had A Good Season In ’21
Column By: MIKE TRAVERSE / RPW – MIDDLETOWN, NY – This Saturday night at OCFS, it will be the 2021 finale for the Precision Hydraulic and Oil Rookie Sportsman division as it will be their graduation night.
The race card is presented by Lightning Auto & Truck of Maybrook, N.Y.
As the curtain falls on the division for this season, the rookies have had a most successful campaign with good fields of cars in their events and not much in the way of bad crashes.
Now, the graduating rookies have a decision to make as whether or not to move up into the Arkel Motors Sportsman division.
There have been 5 point and one non point races for the rookies in 2021. Dylan Madsen has been the most dominate driver in the division, recording 3 wins and 2 second place finishes.
Michael Giuliano has also had a good rookie season having taken the win on April 24th and he has 3 second place finishes.
Isabella Van Orden took the feature on May 8th and she did so in most impressive fashion, turning laps that were faster that night than the regular sportsman competitors.
Isabella had possibly the worst crash of the season in the division, ending up with a destroyed racecar in a June 8th warmup session incident. Fortunately, she was not injured. The dedicated team went to work right away and Van Orden will be back in competition this Saturday.
There are 4 other Rookie drivers who made it onto the podium during the point races. Bob Jashembowski has 2 3rd place finishes with Brett Weslowski, Tyler Banks and Paul Giardini recording single 3rd place runs.
Kasey Hufcut was the winner in the non point race on May 27th followed by Banks and Weslowski.
In addition to the drivers mentioned above, the other rookies who have raced most of the races on the schedule include Joey Mennite, Alan Cote, Matt Fairchild, Mark Connoly, Alyssa Fogel, John Farissier, Thor Holmgren, Fred Pavia and Mike Mikulski.
It doesn’t matter whether they made it onto the podium or not, all of the OCFS 2021 Rookies have done a fine job this season and congratulations to them all. And to those that are moving up, the best of luck to you.
After a few weeks off, the H.O. Penn 358 Small Block Modifieds will be back in action. With 2 wins, Anthony Perrego will be looking to lengthen his point lead over Danny Creeden, which currently stands at 39 points. Tyler Boniface, Craig Mitchell, Roger Henion Jr and John Lieto will be looking to become 2021 repeat winners while 4th in points, Tanner VanDoren, will be looking to add his name to the 358 winner’s list.
It’s been a very busy first half of the 2021 season for the Sportsman division. A great points battle has developed amongst the top 5. Joe Bonetti’s recent win has him tied at the top of the standings with Jeff Hulseapple. Jared LaBagh has closed the gap on the leaders, trailing the leading duo by only 17. Jake Bedell in 4th and Bobby Flood in 5th are very much in the hunt with the amount of racing still to be held.
The Kid’s Club will be active again this Saturday. Drivers scheduled to participate this week are Jerry and Cody Higbie, Alyssa Fogel and Jared Miller. Ms. OCFS 2018, Christina Contento has done a great job, reviving the club after it was inactive during the pandemic wracked 2020. It’s always a fun time for the kids and many of them have been lucky enough to get a ride around the track in the pace truck with Joe Warne. It’s been a great job by Christina, Joe, Ms. OCFS 2021 Erika Bucksbee who has made appearances, and the drivers who have graciously donated their time for the kids. The kid’s smiles say it all.
