BOWMANSVILLE, NY - The Friends of Auto Racing (Foar Score) Fan Club held their awards banquet on January 29th at the Classics V Banquet Hall in Amherst, NY. Over 350 people were in attendance for the 57th such annual awards dinner hosted by the Western New York/Niagara Region of Ontario motorsports Fan Club.
Speedway Illustrated columnist and editor-at-large Mark "Bones" Bourcier, author of the recently published book Richie! The Richie Evans Story was the featured guest speaker of the evening.
The highlight of the evening was the presentation of the Driver of the Year awards to Pete Bicknell (dirt) and Dave Wollaber (asphalt). The newest inductees into the Foar Score Hall of Fame were also presented, as Don McGinnis, Charlie Rudolph, Bobby Sund, and Pete Tingue were added to the prestigious honor roll.
Wollaber earned his award after his precedent establishing year at Lancaster Raceway Park. The University at Buffalo engineering student became the first driver in Lancaster's history to earn track titles in two divisions in the same season, capturing the championships in the Modified and TQ Midget divisions. He earned three feature victories in each of the two divisions, including two race nights in which he swept both divisions' main events.
Bicknell was honored for his sterling 2004 season in which he captured 7 wins at his own Merrittville Speedway en route to an amazing 17th Modified championship at the Thorold, ON oval, and grabbed two more wins at Ransomville (as part of a consistently strong 14 top fives in 15 starts) on the way to his ninth Modified title at the Niagara County, NY speedplant. In addition, he placed third in the Turning Stone Casino 358 Modified Super Dirt Series, with Series race win in Granby, QC.
Bicknell and partner Randy Williamson were also presented with the Mechanical Achievement Award for their efforts in investigating, testing, and promoting engine cost-cutting possibilities for Dirt 358 Modified and Sportsman racers.
Greg Oakes was presented with the Achievement on Dirt Award for his three-pronged championship season in '04, earning the Modified Sportsman titles at Freedom and McKean County as well as the title in the inaugural Regional Racing Series for the Modified Sportsmen, a limited touring series based in Western New York and Northern Pennsylvania.
Shawn Dunning and Tom McGrath each received Achievement on Asphalt Awards. Dunning was recognized for his trifecta of major Late Model wins -- the Firecracker 100 and the Budweiser 100 at Holland and his second consecutive win in the Late Model Race of Champions at Oswego. McGrath's run of major wins was similarly recognized, as the Lancaster Modified pilot snared victories in 3 of Lancaster's 4 annual major Modified showdowns: the Budweiser 50, Firecracker 75, and US Open 125.
The Woman in Racing Award was presented to Patti Pruitt, for her strength of character in returning to the drivers seat in 2004 after her firey 2003 wreck, and scoring feature race victories at Wyoming County and Tioga. The Perseverance Award was presented to the Jeff Brown race team, in recognition of the re-building tasks they endured after their Late Model was destroyed in a grinding crash at Lancaster in June.
The creators of the SST Sportsman program, Jim Majchrzak and Doug Yeo of Wyoming County International Speedway and Chris Zacharias of Tioga Motorsports Park, received the Promotional Achievement Award. Long-time TQ Midget racer, owner, mechanic, and promoter Harry Macy, who overcame a serious medical problem in the previous off-season, received the Dick Hammond Dedication to Auto Racing Award. The Media Award was presented to Buffalo News sports reporter Keith McShea.
Genesee Super Stock driver Jon Rivers was named Rookie of the Year on Dirt, while Lancaster Super Stock driver Mike Scott was named Rookie of the Year on asphalt. Ransomville/Genesee Sportsman pilot Kyle Inman was awarded the Most Improved Driver on Dirt award, while the Most Improved Driver on Asphalt award was presented to third generation driver Scott Wylie, the 2004 Cup Lites Series champion. Holland Pro Modified racer John Gast, Jr. received the Sportsmanship award. Foar Score Vice-President Roger McCabe received the President's Award for Exceptional Contributions to the Club.
Contribution to Auto Racing awards were presented to Bob Cordova of Original Pizza Logs, a major area motorsports sponsor; Dave DeLange, Lancaster Modified car owner and sponsor; Dave Hawk, a former racer and innovative parts designer and machinist; Father Norb Osoletes, the Holland Speedway Chaplain, and Mark Southcott, racing historian and site editor of NYRaceZone.com.
Special Recognition awards were presented to Erin Crocker, as the first female racer ever to win a World of Outlaws Sprint Car feature race; Paul Graff, owner/director of the Cup Lites Series and driving force behind the high dollar Firecracker weekend at Holland; Jeff McGinnis, for his major race successes in DIRT Sportsman action at Ransomville Speedway; Al Graham, Dave McCready, and Pete Yasses from Genesee Speedway, for their efforts at out-foxing Mother Nature and squeezing in Saturday shows under tough weather conditions; and drag racers Mike Janis for his 2nd career IHRA Pro Modified championship and Fred Hahn, who is cutting back on his racing schedule after 16 very successful seasons.
FOUR INDUCTED TO FOAR SCORE HALL OF FAMEAt the Friends of Auto Racing (Foar Score) Fan Club 57th annaul Awards Banquet, held on January 29th at the Classics V Banquet Hall in Amherst, NY, four new members were inducted into the Hall of Fame of the Western New York/Niagara Region of Ontario motorsports fan club.
Dirt Late Model and Modified standout Don McGinnis, versatile Modified ace Charlie Rudoph, 60's Late Model star Pete Tingue, and 50's champion Bobby Sund were added to the honor roll.
Don McGinnis first made his mark in dirt Late Model racing in the 70's, amassing 28 wins in 1973, and 16 wins and the titles at Ransomville, Merrittville, and Humberstone in 1975. He later showed his winning style in a Modified, earning the 1989 Ransomville/Merrittville/Humberstone Tri-Track Driver of the Year Award, scoring the 1994 Ransomville Modified title, and for 19 straight seasons, never finishing out of the top ten in points at any track on which he raced regularly. Overall, he earned 97 career feature wins. Currently, Don is very much involved with the successful Dirt Sportsman racing career of son Jeff.
Charlie Rudolph followed the footsteps of his racing father Jim, and quickly established his own identity as a top-level racer. Jumping right into asphalt Modified racing, he earned his first track championship at age 22, grabbing the Lancaster Modified crown in 1980. Two years later, he shifted his focus to Dirt Modified racing, and took the Ransomville crown that season. In 1986, he notched the track Modified titles at Ransomville, Cayuga County, and Rolling Wheels, as well as the overall Mr. DIRT Modified crown. In 1987, he made a foray into NASCAR Winston Cup racing, with a best finish of 13th in the July Pocono race. He returned to DIRT Modified action in 1988, and made the full circle back to asphalt Modifieds in the early 90's, earning Lancaster titles in 1991 and 1993. Overall, his record shows 49 dirt Modified race wins and 38 asphalt Modified victories in his career. With his induction, Charlie joins his father Jim as only the second father/son tandem in the Foar Score Hall of Fame.
The late Bobby Sund was a star of racing at Buffalo's Civic Stadium throughout the 50's, earning Stadium season championships in 1952, 1953, and 1955. His most successful year was '52, during which he rolled to 17 victories in a 30 race season. After the Stadium was closed for racing following the 1959 season, he shifted his racing efforts to Lancaster Speedway, and won that track's Super Modified title in 1961. In 1964, he moved to the ERCA circuit, competing in the 6-cylinder "Super B's" at Holland and Perry before retiring a couple of years later. Fellow Civic Stadium racer and long-time area race official Butch Ball accepted the Hall of Fame trophy in Sund's memory.
Pete Tingue was an early star of the ERCA circuit, competing against the likes of Art Clark, Dick Flaig, and Eddie Anchor, with a great 7 year run from 1961 through 1967. During that period, he finished in the top three in Holland Modern Stock (later re-named as the New Cars) points in six of those years, including track titles in 1961, 1964, and 1967. His high point was the '64 season, when he also took the Perry Modern Stock title as well as the overall ERCA Modern Stock championship. He qualified for a start in the Permatex Sportsman race at Daytona in the mid-60's, and continued racing to a mid-70's retirement. However, he "un-retired" in the early 80's, getting back into Street Stock racing at Freedom, McKean County, Perry, and Genesee, picking up a few more wins through 1990 in this second phase of his career.
This newest class of inductees brings the total honored in the Foar Score Hall of Fame to 82.
- From Rick Mooney (RMooneypr@aol.com) and Paul Faleski (716)-983-8008 )
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