February 7, 2004
Bret Emrick

Tampa (Gibsonton),FL 2-7-04

Donnie Moran of Dresden,OH pocketed $15,000 Saturday for his victory in the 75 lap finale of the "YJ Stinger 28th Annual Winternationals" at East Bay Raceway Park in Tampa (Gibsonton),FL, sanctioned by the Stacker2 Xtreme DirtCar Series. Driving the QPI Tools Dirt Ripper Donnie Moran Racing No. 99 MasterSbilt/SMS Engines/Chevrolet Monte Carlo, Moran overhauled Matt Miller on lap 49 and then held Miller at bay taking the win by nearly 3 seconds. Steve Shaver, who started 12th, rode home in third with 14th starting Davey Johnson fourth and 19th starting Shane Clanton finished fifth. Rounding out the top ten runners were Don O'Neal in sixth followed by Jimmy Mars, Dennis "Rambo" Franklin, 24th starting Ray Cook and Billy Drake.

"If your going to win one of this races you might as well make it the big money race", said Moran to the nearly SRO crowd that was on hand for the final race of the six-night event at EBRP. "The car worked nearly flawlessly. It wasn't that good in the dash so we went to work on it and got it just right. These Goodyear Eagles we're now using performed the best I've ever seen here at East Bay. No matter what, you could race the car where ever you needed to put it. I just need to thank QPI Tools for their support and MasterSbilt Race Cars for a great car. And, I'm so happy with the SMS Engines we're now using. Man, do they have response and horsepower."

When asked about the week of racing Moran stated, "We probably should have won at least two other nights but stuff happened and we didn't get them. But, I am really impressed with the direction the series has taken. Stacker2, Goodyear Tires, Gemini Auto Care Centers and all the other series sponsors have given us what all of us have wanted for so long. The Goodyear tires have been just simply awesome. I've never been on a tire that had so much forward bite. And, even though we just went 75 hard laps the tires are still good. We can run them again. The Goodyear tires have evened the playing field. It doesn't matter if your one of the top dogs or a driver just starting out. This Goodyear Tire program puts everybody on the same page which makes for a great show for the fans and puts the emphasis back on the car set-up and driver skill rather than what tire you put on."

Eddie Carrier Jr. and John Mason occupied the front row for the start with neither driver getting an edge. Carrier Jr., Mason, third starting Mars and fifth starting Earl Pearson Jr. headed for the stripe to complete lap one four-wide with Mars shown as the leader. Mars would stay in front through lap 3 when Pearson Jr. powered into the lead.

By lap 10 Pearson Jr. had opened up a five car length lead over Mars with Billy Drake third ahead of 10th starting John Anderson and Moran while Carrier Jr., Mason, Miller, Kelly Boen and Shaver sat sisxth through tenth. Pearson Jr. encountered lapped traffic on lap 12 allowing Mars and the rest of the lead pack drivers to close.

Slicing his way through the backmarkers using all three grooves of the speedway Pearson Jr. continued his torrid pace as the race stayed green. By lap 20 Pearson Jr. enjoyed a huge lead as Moran began to make his way to the front. Moran had gotten by Anderson for fourth on lap 15, took third from Drake on lap 22 and grabbed second from Mars on lap 24.

Moran whittled into Pearson Jr.'s huge lead chopping the deficit to two car lengths when the races first caution waved on lap 34 when Drake pulled to a stop with a broken left front tie rod. Drake had raced the previous 10 laps with the broken steering piece but somehow kept the car under control until it became too much of a handful forcing Drake to come to a stop in turn two. At this point severl drivers headed for the pits, including the third running Mars and seventh running Don O'Neal, for a change of Goodyear Eagles which shuffled the deck for the double-file restart. Drake's crew made quick repairs and got their driver back into the race before going back to green.

For the restart, Matt Miller lined up third and with the double-file restart shot to the outside groove to overhaul Pearson Jr. and Moran off of turn two beating them back to the start-finish line to lead lap 35. Moran quickly moved past Pearson Jr. for second one lap later and set his sights on Miller. Moran swept past Miller in turn two while working lap 49 to become the new race leader. With 25 laps left in the books the top 10 running order was Moran the leader with Miller second, Shaver now third with Pearson Jr. fourth and Anderson fifth followed by Franklin, Johnson, Clanton, Jeff Smith and Cook.

Moran continued his rapid pace using every inch of the racing surface to slice and dice his way through the backmarkers continually opening up his lead on Miller. By lap 60 Moran had a nearly 12 car length advantage on Miller but that all changed on lap 62 when the caution waved for Smith who had tangled with a car in turn four spinning to a stop.

Miller was now back up with Moran for the restart but Moran just had too much horspower and traction for Miller to stay with the leader. The caution waved again on lap 68 when Anderson hopped the turn 2 inside berm stalling his car when he re-entered the race track. As before on the previous restart Moran was just too strong for Miller to mount any challenge against him. Pearson Jr. and Clanton were racing for fifth with two laps to go when contact between the two sent Pearson jr. spinning to a stop in turn four. The final two laps were all Moran as he easily ran away from Miller and the rest of the pack to secure the win.

The $53,000 purse attracted 54 drivers to the semi-banked 1/3rd mile dirt track with Mars earning the RINGERS GLOVES Fast Time Award in time trials with his fast lap of 15.212 seconds. Taking heat race wins were Mars, Pearson Jr., Mason, Moran, Franklin and Carrier Jr. The twin "B" Main events fell to Clanton and Jeep Van Wormer respectively while Carrier Jr. copped the YJ STINGER EXTREME ENERGY DRINKS heat race winners dash to earn the pole starting position. The non-qualifers Donn Goodson Farms Memorial Strawberry Dash went to Anthony White.

The Speed Channel cameras caught all the action of the night's activities and will broadcast the event February 28 at 3:00pm EST. Two red flags were needed in the heat races. The first in heat 2 when Sean Cosgrove slipped wide exiting turn four on lap 9 climbing the wall and just past the flagstand began to flip. Cosgrove's car turned over 3 and 1/2 times before coming to a rest near the entrance to turn 1. Safety crews were quickly on the scene and after a few seconds pulled Cosgrove from his destroyed race car. Though shaken, Cosgrove was able to walk to the medic vehicle for an evaluation. Heat 3 saw Al Purkey nearly duplicate what happened to Cosgrove only Purkey's car rode the wall from the flagstand to midway between turn 1 and turn 2 before coming to a stop with the entire right hand side of the car sheared away. Purkey was unhurt.

The 2004 Stacker2 Xtreme DirtCar Series schedule is being finalized and should be released in the very near future.

Stacker2 Xtreme DirtCar Series Race Report For 2-7-04 Round No. 3-2004 Season-"YJ STINGER 28th Annual Winternationals" East Bay Raceway Park-Tampa (Gibsonton),FL-1/3rd Mile Oval $53,000 Purse-$15,000 To Win-75 Lap Feature

Showing Finish Pos.,Start Pos.,Car #, Driver, Laps Completed, Reason Out (if any) and Purse Money Won

1. (6) #99 Donnie Moran 75 Running $15,100
2. (8) # 7 Matt Miller 75 Running $7,500
3. (12) # 0 Steve Shaver 75 Running $4,000
4. (14) #19J Davey Johnson 75 Running $3,000
5. (19) #25 Shane Clanton (R) 75 Running $2,000
6. (11) #71 Don O'Neal 75 Running $1,800
7. (3) #28M Jimmy Mars 75 Running $1,700
8. (4) #2F Dennis Franklin 75 Running $1,500
9. (24) #53 Ray Cook 75 Running $1,200
10. (7) # 9 Billy Drake (R) 75 Running $1,100
11. (10) #1K John Anderson (R) 75 Running $1,075
12. (5) # 1 Earl Pearson Jr. 75 Running $1,050
13. (20) #55 Jeep Van Wormer (R) 74 Running $1,025
14. (2) #72 John Mason 74 Running $1,100
15. (23) #T31 Shane Tankersley 74 Running $1,000
16. (1) #28 Eddie Carrier Jr. 74 Running $1,100
17. (13) #59 Bill Cunningham 74 Running $1,000
18. (22) #15B Brian Birkhofer 73 Running $1,000
19. (15) #79 Vince Muzzin 73 Running $1,000
20. (17) #32 Roger Crouse 73 Running $1,000
21. (16) #70 Jeff Smith 62 Mechanical $1,000
22. (21) #10 Pete Parker 40 Mechanical $1,000
23. (18) #83 Joe Morris 19 Mechanical $1,000
24. (9) #07 Kelly Boen 18 Mechanical $1,000

Time Of Race: 43 mins. 10 secs.
Yellow Flags: Four: Laps 33, 62, 68, 73
Red Flags: None
Lap Leaders: Four: Mars 1-2, Pearson Jr. 3-34, Miller 35-48, Moran 49-75
GEMINI AUTO CARE CENTERS "Hard Charger of the Race": Cook (advanced 15 positions)
LUCAS OIL "Rookie of the Race": Clanton
Provisional Starters: Tankersley,Cook
Car Count: 54
RINGERS GLOVES Fast Time Award: Mars 15.212 secs.
Heat Race Winners: Mars,Pearson Jr.,Mason,Moran,Franklin,Carrier Jr.
"B" Main Winners: Clanton,Van Wormer
YJ STINGER EXTERME ENERGY DRINKS Heat Race Winners Pole Dash Winner: Carrier Jr.
Donn Goodson Farms Strawberry Dash Winner: Anthony White

SUMMARY - RINGERS GLOVES Time Trials: Showing Pos.,Car #,Driver,Residence,Sponsor,Chassis/Engine/Body Style, First Lap, Second Lap, Fast Lap

1. #28M Jimmy Mars Elk Mound,WI Stacker2-Heeg Well Drilling MasterSbilt/Pro Power/Monte Carlo 15.212 15.234 15.212
2. # 1 Earl Pearson Jr. Jacksonville,FL Lucas Oil-Dunn Benson Ford Rocket/Larry Wallace/Taurus 15.262 15.409 15.262
3. #72 John Mason Millersburg,OH Bert Transmission Rayburn/Malcuit/Monte Carlo 17.571 15.324 15.324
4. #99 Donnie Moran Dresden,OH QPI Tools Dirt Ripper MasterSbilt/SMS/Monte Carlo 16.810 15.353 15.353
5. #71 Don O'Neal Martinsville,IN A1 Auto Salvage-Living Room Center Rayburn/Pro Power/Monte Carlo 15.420 15.487 15.420
6. #28 Eddie Carrier Jr. (R) Ona,WV Grover Motorsports-Engines,Inc. Rocket/Grover/Taurus 15.475 15.523 15.475
7. #70C Jeff Choquette (R) West Palm Beach,FL Ron Arrowood Rocket/Progressive/Grand Prix 15.475 15.488 15.475
8. # 7 Matt Miller Waterville,OH McCullough Motorsports-LoTemp Brazing Rocket/Russell Baker/Grand Prix 15.555 15.490 15.490
9. #07 Kelly Boen Henderson,CO Road Runner Fabrication Rocket/Dickens/Grand Prix 15.506 15.738 15.506
10. #1x1 Sonny Conley New Martinsville,WV Conley Enterprises LazerG2/Emery/Monte Carlo 15.904 15.545 15.545
11. # 2 Dennis Franklin Gaffney,SC Hamrick's of Gaffney Rayburn/Cornett/Taurus 15.554 15.751 15.554
12. # 0 Steve Shaver Vienna,WV Richard Construction-Bill Bland Rocket/Malcuit/Monte Carlo 16.420 15.630 15.630
13. # 9 Billy Drake (R) Bloomington,IL MasterSbilt Race Cars MasterSbilt/Gaerte/Grand Prix 16.369 15.688 15.688
14. #64 Sean Cosgrove Catharpin,VA Drywall Systems Rocket/Hersehy/Grand Prix 15.948 15.703 15.703
15. #79 Vince Muzzin Jensen Beach,FL Muzzin Brothers Rocket/RaceTek/Grand Prix 15.740 15.705 15.705
16. #1K John Anderson (R) Omaha,NE THT Designs Rocket/Hatfield/Grand Prix 15.722 16.166 15.722
17. #58 Garrett Durrett (R) Simsboro,LA Garrett Racing-Pro Power Racing Warrior/Pro Power/Taurus 15.876 15.732 15.732
18. #83 Joe Morris Galatia,IL Morris Excavating Rocket/Runyon/Grand Prix 15.765 16.200 15.765
19. #59 Bill Cunningham Jefferson,OH JBR Graphics-Fred's Fantastic Fuels MasterSbilt/Craiger/Grand Prix 15.777 16.214 15.777
20. #19J Davey Johnson Greensburg,PA Reliable Painting MasterSbilt/Malcuit/Grand Prix 16.158 15.811 15.811
21. #21D Dan Stone Thompson,PA NEP Telephone LazerG2/Rhodes/Monte Carlo 16.834 15.817 15.817
22. #30 Mar Voigt Marine,IL Bilstein Shocks-Rhyne Engines Rocket/Rhyne/Taurus 17.653 15.832 15.832
23. #15B Brian Birkhofer Muscatine,IA Double Eagle Racing Apparel MasterSbilt/Pro Power/Monte Carlo 15.887 15.868 15.868
24. #34J John Whitney Cincinnati,OH Estes Leasing-B&M Farms Swartz/Estes/Monte Carlo 16.242 15.909 15.909
25. #56 Rohn Moon Greenwood,IN Creonix Rayburn/Moon Power/Monte Carlo 16.019 15.917 15.917
26. #10 Pete Parker Kaukauna,WI Potowatomi Bingo Casino Lodge Reliable/Travis Kern/Grand Prix 16.419 15.926 15.926
27. #T31 Shane Tankersley Morgonton,GA Hicks Speciality Welding Rocket/Gaerte/Grand Prix 16.021 15.950 15.950
28. #55 Jeep Van Wormer (R) Pinconning,MI Bayline Fire Protection Warrior/Pro Power/Taurus 42.441 15.957 15.957
29. #C9 Steve Casebolt Richmond,IN Seubert Calf Ranches Rocket/Pro Craft/Monte Carlo 16.034 15.988 15.988
30. #2* D.J. Troutman Hyndman,PA Stacker2 YJ Stinger Rocket/Russell Baker/Grand Prix 16.139 16.011 16.011
31. #1N Casey Noonan Sylvania,OH Noonan's Perfomance Machining Rocket/Performance/Grand Prix 16.020 NT 16.020
32. #5C Johnny Collins Jacksonville,FL Sheltra & Sons Construction Rayburn/Clements/Grand Prix 16.717 16.071 16.071
33. #33P Al Purkey (R) Coffeyville,KS Larry Shaw Race Cars Shaw/Hatfield/Grand Prix 16.547 16.084 16.084
34. #70 Jeff Smith Dallas,NC Die Cast Digest-West Haven Speed Rocket/Gaerte/Monte Carlo 17.325 16.090 16.090
35. #32 Roger Crouse Plant City,FL Coastal Trucking Rocket/RaceTek/Grand Prix 16.335 16.110 16.110
36. #A1 Duke Whiseant (R) Texarkana,AR A1 Auto Salvage Rayburn/Pro Power/Monte Carlo 17.014 16.192 16.192
37. # 2 Anthony White Clinton,TN Stone Plus GRT/Vic Hill/Monte Carlo 16.192 18.231 16.192
38. #53 Ray Cook Brasstown,NC Dodge-Bill Elliott Racing MasterSbilt/Gaerte/Interpid R/T 64.663 16.258 16.258
39. #32D Darren Miller (R) Chadwick,IL Seubert Calf Ranches Rocket/Pro Power/Taurus 16.292 16.450 16.292
40. #23 Patrick Sheltra Indiantown,FL Sheltra & Sons Construction Rayburn/Clements/Monte Carlo 16.359 16.302 16.302
41. #1M Mike Mataragas Dekalb,IL Peterson Aluminum Rayburn/Pro POwer/Grand Prix 16.330 16.483 16.330
42. #69 Terry Eaglin Versailles,IN Helena Chemicals Co. Rocket/Gaerte/Intrepid R/T 16.344 16.477 16.344
43. #92 Jeremy Morgan Okeechobee,FL Morgan's Lawn Mower-Morgan Furniture Rocket/Wilt/Grand Prix 16.357 16.678 16.357
44. #9Z Jayme Zidar Greenfield,WI American Foundation Rayburn/Pro Power/Monte Carlo 16.419 16.498 16.419
45. #99B Justin Blackwell Norman,IN Blackwell Trucking & Limestone Rayburn/Pro Power/Monte Carlo 16.429 17.583 16.429
46. #7C Jim Curry Norman,IN Jim Blackwell Trucking & Conveying Rayburn/Pro Power/Monte Carlo 16.480 NT 16.480
47. #H7 Phill Hall Mt.Airy,NC Mountain River Trucking-LC Transportation Rocket/Custom/Monte Carlo 16.627 16.509 16.509
48. #00 Richard Smith Science Hill,KY Donnie Smith Auto Sales Swartz/Cropper/Grand Prix 18.389 16.554 16.554
49. #JO J.O. Nobles Nahunta.GA K&N Filters Warrior/Joel Nobles/Monte Carlo 16.842 16.560 16.560
50. #25 Shane Clanton (R) Locust Grove,GA RSD Enterprises-SAE Parts Rocket/Custom/Monte Carlo 16.634 17.086 16.634
51. #64X Ryan Dauber Tonica,IL DCI-MidState Trucking GRT/Pro Power/Monte Carlo 16.863 17.747 16.863
52. #17 Frank Smith Mechanicsville,MD Dirttracks.com LazerG2/Campbell/Monte Carlo 17.206 17.897 17.206
53. #7T Dave Troutman Hyndman,PA Budweiser-TC Race Car Parts Rocket/Russell Baker/Grand Prix 17.955 17.311 17.311
54. #14 Kyle Berck Marquette,NE Dorothy Lynch Homestyle Dressing Rocket/Wegner/Taurus NT NT

Heat # 1 (10 Laps-Top 3 Advance To Feature): Mars,Drake,Cunningham,Moon,White,Noonan,Choquette, Morgan,Nobles

Heat # 2 (10 Laps-Top 3 Advance To Feature): Pearson Jr.,M. Miller,Johnson,Clanton,Parker,Cook,Collins, Cosgrove,Zidar

Heat # 3 (10 Laps-Top 3 Advance To Feature): Mason,Boen,Muzzin,Stone,Tankersley,D. Miller,Dauber, Blackwell,Purkey

Heat # 4 (10 Laps-Top 3 Advance To Feature): Moran,Anderson,J. Smith,Van Wormer,Conley,Voigt,Curry, Sheltra,F. Smith

Heat # 5 (10 Laps-Top 3 Advance To Feature): Franklin,O'Neal,Crouse,Casebolt,Birkhofer,D. Troutman, Mataragas,Hall,Durrett

Heat # 6 (10 Laps-Top 3 Advance To Feature): Carrier Jr.,Shaver,Morris,Eaglin,Whiseant,D.J. Troutman, Whitney,R. Smith,Berck-NS

"B" Main # 1 (15 Laps-Top 2 Advance To Feature): Clanton,Parker,White,Moon,Dauber,Zidar,Stone, Morgan,Nobles,Cook,Choquette,Noonan,D. Miller,Collins,Tankersley,Cosgrove-NS,Blackwell-NS, Purkey-NS

"B" Main # 2 (15 Laps-Top 2 Advance To Feature): Van Wormer,Birkhofer,Conley,Whitney,Voigt,R. Smith, Whiseant,Curry,Mataragas,Eaglin,F. Smith,D.J. Troutman,D. Troutman,Casebolt-NS,Sheltra-NS,Hall-NS, Durrett-NS,Berck-NS

YJ STINGER EXTREME ENERGY DRINK Heat Race Winners Pole Dash (6 Laps-Finish Determines First Three Rows Of Feature): Carrier Jr.,Mason,Mars,Franklin,Pearson Jr.,Moran

Donn Goodson Farms Memorial Strawberry Dash (10 Laps-Random Draw Of DNQ Drivers): White, D. Troutman,Eaglin,Voigt,Blackwell,Zidar,Stone,Dauber,Mataragas,Moon

2004 Stacker2 Xtreme DirtCar Series "YJ STINGER CUP" Point Standings after 2-7-04

Showing Pos.,Car #,Driver,Residence,Points, Season Winnings

1. #28M Jimmy Mars Elk Mound,WI 512 $10,550
2. #99 Donnie Moran Dresden,OH 485 $18,400
3. # 1 Earl Pearson Jr. Jacksonville,FL 481 $9,050
4. #72 John Mason Millersburg,OH 442 $8,700
5. # 2 Dennis Franklin Gaffney,SC 437 $3,550
6. # 7 Matt Miller Waterville,OH 424 $9,650
7. #19J Davey Johnson Greensburg,PA 421 $4,400
8. #15B Brian Birkhofer Muscatine,IA 409 $4,600
9. # 0 Steve Shaver Vienna,WV 396 $5,900
10. #71 Don O'Neal Martinsville,IN 395 $3,900
11. #28 Eddie Carrier Jr. (R) Ona,WV 382 $2,600
12. #25 Shane Clanton (R) Locust Grove,GA 379 $3,200
13. # 9 Billy Drake (R) Bloomington,IL 374 $2,600
14. #T31 Shane Tankersley Morgonton,GA 354 $2,000
15. #55 Jeep Van Wormer (R) Pinconning,MI 350 $2,125
16. #53 Ray Cook Brasstown,NC 323 $1,800
17. #70 Jeff Smith Dallas,NC 321 $2,600
18. #32 Roger Crouse Plant City,FL 317 $2,000
19. #1K John Anderson (R) Omaha,NE 313 $1,675
20. #1x1 Sonny Conley New Martinsville,WV 312 $1,150
21. #14 Kyle Berck Marquette,NE 309 $1,150
22. #A1 Duke Whiseant (R) Texarkana,AR 309 $1,100
23. #58 Garrett Durrett (R) Simsboro,LA 304 $1,000
24. #33 Al Purkey (R) Coffeyville,KS 302 $1,300
25. #10 Pete Parker Kaukauna,WI 301 $1,625

February 6, 2004
Bret Emrick

Tampa (Gibsonton),FL 2-6-04

Jimmy Mars of Elk Mound,WI captured the final race of the Northern Xtreme DirtCar Series sanctioned portion of the "YJ Stinger 28th Annual Winternationals" Friday at East Bay Raceway Park in Tampa (Gibsonton),FL pocketing over $12,000 . Driving the Stacker2/Heeg Well Drilling/Deppe Enterprises No. 28M Jimmy Mars Racing MasterSbilt Race Cars/Pro Power/Chevrolet Monte Carlo, Mars inherited the lead on lap 24 when Donnie Moran tangled with the lapped car of Jeff Choquette. The fifth starting Mars then had his hands full with both Shane Clanton and Earl Pearson Jr. late in the race before pulling away to a nearly 2 second margin of victory.

Clanton, who started 9th, rode home in second with Pearson Jr. third ahead of Dennis "Rambo" Franklin and 12th starting John Mason. Rounding out the top 10 finishers were 19th starting John Anderson in sixth followed by 21st starting Brian Birkhofer in seventh, 18th starting Don O'Neal eighth 23rd starting Davey Johnson ninth and Kelly Boen tenth.

"I sure hope the fans feel they got their money's worth with that one", said a very worn out Mars. "I really had to work my butt off in this race. I'm whipped. It was unfortunate that Donnie tangled with that lapped car. I hated to see that for him. He was really strong. Then those laps with Shane on one side and Earl on the other racing through traffic. Man, we had to physically work tonight. I just need to thank my crew chief, my brother Chris, and the rest of the crew, MasterSbilt, Pro Power and of course, Stacker2, Heeg and Deppe. The series sponsors too. They've created a great opportunity for all of us."

When asked how the Goodyear Eagles performed in the 60 lap contest Mars related, "Those Eagles gave me so much traction tonight. That's why I'm tired. The track was just hooked up. And, it did it's usual. The groove changed all night long and you had to chase it. Everyone had traction tonight. Goodyear has developed a great tire and will continue to work to improve them. It's a great program. We've all seen how competitive it has been this week."

At the drop of the green flag pole sitter Moran jumped out to the lead with Pearson Jr., Franklin, Eddie Carrier Jr. and Mars in tow at the end of the first lap. Franklin powered by Pearson Jr. for second whne the field completed lap 2 and set his sites on Moran. Franklin powered by Moran using the top groove exiting turn four to lead lap 3 while Mars used the bottom to pass Carrier Jr. The fast paced action was slowed before lap 4 could be recorded when Birkhofer spun in turn 2 and Mark Voigt rolled to a stop in turn 4.

Moran easily powered away from the field on the double-file restart to complete one more lap before the caution waved again when Sean Cosgrove spun in turn 4. Mars worked his way past Pearson Jr. for third once the race resumed. Moran felt heavy pressure from the high-groove running Franklin in turn one while Mars stayed glued to the bottom beating Franklin back to the stripe to grab second. Moran, running the middle groove, powered through one and two to put some distance on Mars. Before lap 8 could be put in the books the red flag flew after Matt Miller slammed the turn three wall going airborne but luckily landing and not flipping. Miller climbed from his car uninjured but was done for the race.

Once the green flag replaced the red flag Moran simply shot away from the field by lap 10. Mars ran second with Franklin third , Carrier Jr. fourth and Pearson Jr. fifth with Mason now up to sixth trailed by Clanton, Boean,Anderson and O'Neal. Mason, using the high groove, shot past Pearson Jr. in turn four to grab fifth at lap 12 notching Carrier Jr. for fourth one lap later.

Moran enjoyed a nearly 3 second lead on Mars when he encountered lapped traffic on lap 16. Moran expertly weaved his way through the traffic keeping Mars at bay. Clanton worked his way to fifth on lap 18. Moran continued his assault but that all changed at lap 25.

Moran entered turn one with the slower car of Jeff Choquette directly ahead. Choquette lost the handle midway between turn 1 and turn 2 sliding sideways and with no place to go Moran jumped on the brakes, clipped Choquette and rolled to a stop. Moran was able to continue but restarted at the back behind the lead lap cars.

Mars, now the leader, had Franklin, Mason, Clanton and Pearson Jr. behind him for the restart with Carrier Jr. Boen, Anderson, Johnson and O'Neal trailing. Cosgrove lost the handle on the restart exiting turn 2 to bring the caution right back out. The second restart brought about another caution when Choquette, Moran, Cosgrove and Mike Mataragas tangled in turn 4. From the point forward the race went green.

Clanton used the outside groove to get past Franklin as the field completed lap 26. Mars began to chase the East Bay "fast lane" as the race remained green opening up a 1.5 second lead on Clanton. By lap 40 Clanton and the other lead lap cars had caught Mars as he lost ground working traffic. From lap 42 to lap 47 Mars had Clanton to the outside of him and Pearson Jr. to the inside of him racing three-wide. Mars was able to fend off the challenges by lap 48 and with 10 to go had pulled out to a nearly 1 second lead. Pearson Jr. and Clanton went after each other for a few laps with Pearson Jr. grabbing second on lap 57 only to have Clanton take the spot back for good with two laps to go.

The $43,000 purse saw 61 drivers sign-in for the event with Carrier Jr. taking the fast time award in time trials with a fast lap of 15.275 seconds around the semi-banked 1/3rd mile oval. Carrier Jr. won his heat race as did Pearson Jr., Mars, Franklin, Moran and Duke Whiseant. The "B" Main events fell to Anderson and Dan Stone with Moran winning the YJ STINGER EXTREME ENERGY DRINKS dash. Taking the Donn Goodson Farms Memorial Strawberry dash was Shane Tankersley.

Northern Xtreme DirtCar Series Race Report For 2-6-04 Race No. 3-2004 Season-"YJ STINGER 28th Annual Winternationals" East Bay Raceway Park-Tampa (Gibsonton),FL-1/3rd Mile Oval $43,000 Purse-$12,000 To Win-60 Lap Feature

Showing Finish Pos.,Start Pos.,Car #, Driver, Laps Completed, Reason Out (if any) and Purse Money Won

1. (4) #28M Jimmy Mars 60 Running $12,100
2. (9) #25 Shane Clanton 60 Running $6,500
3. (2) # 1 Earl Pearson Jr. 60 Running $4,500
4. (3) #2F Dennis Franklin 60 Running $3,000
5. (12) #72 John Mason 60 Running $2,000
6. (19) #1K John Anderson 60 Running $1,500
7. (21) #15B Brian Birkhofer 60 Running $1,200
8. (18) #71 Don O'Neal 60 Running $1,100
9. (23) #19J Davey Johnson 60 Running $1,000
10. (7) #07 Kelly Boen 60 Running $900
11. (10) #32D Darren Miller 60 Running $850
12. (20) #21D Dan Stone 60 Running $800
13. (14) #59 Bill Cunningham 59 Running $750
14. (22) #32 Roger Crouse 57 Running $700
15. (11) #1M Mike Mataragas 57 Running $650
16. (4) #28 Eddie Carrier Jr. 52 Mechanical $700
17. (1) #99 Donnie Moran 25 Accident $650
18. (15) #70C Jeff Choquette 25 Accident $500
19. (6) #A1 Duke Whiseant 25 Mechanical $600
20. (17) #64 Sean Cosgrove (R) 24 Accident $500
21. (24) #7T Dave Troutman 18 Mechanical $500
22. (8) # 7 Matt Miller 7 Accident $500
23. (23) #30 Mark Voigt 5 Mechanical $500
24. (13) #70 Jeff Smith 2 Mechanical $500

Time Of Race: 43 mins. 10 secs.
Yellow Flags: Five: Laps 3,4,25,25(rs),25(rrs)
Red Flags: One: Lap 7
Lap Leaders: Three: Moran 1-2,Franklin 3-5,Moran 6-24,Mars 25-60
GEMINI AUTO CARE CENTERS "Hard Charger of the Race": Birkhofer,Johnson (advanced 14 positions)
"Rookie of the Race": Cosgrove
Provisional Starters: Johnson,Troutman
Car Count: 61
Time Trials Fast Qualifier: Carrier Jr. 15.275 secs.
Heat Race Winners: Carrier Jr.,Pearson Jr.,Mars,Franklin,Moran,Whiseant
"B" Main Winners: Anderson,Stone
YJ STINGER EXTREME ENERGY DRINKS Dash Winner: Moran
Donn Goodson Farms Memorial Strawberry Dash Winner: Shane Tankersley

Heat # 1 (10 Laps-Top 3 Advance To Feature): Carrier Jr.,Boen,J. Smith,Parker,Muzzin,Casebolt,J. Collins,Harvey,Pounds,R. Smith,Sheltra-NS

Heat # 2 (10 Laps-Top 3 Advance To Feature): Pearson Jr.,M. Miller,Cunningham,Johnson,Birkhofer, Hackett,Moon,Cook,Durrett,Radich

Heat # 3 (10 Laps-Top 3 Advance To Feature): Mars,Clanton,Choquette,Anderson,Purkey,Shaver,Curry, Berck,Hall,D. Troutman

Heat # 4 (10 Laps-Top 3 Advance To Feature): Franklin,D. Miller,Voigt,Conley,Whitney,Crouse,England, Zidar,D.J. Troutman,Patterson-NS

Heat # 5 (10 Laps-Top 3 Advance To Feature): Moran,Mataragas,Cosgrove,Drake,Stone,Morris, Van Wormer,M. Collins,Tankersley,Nobles

Heat # 6 (10 Laps-Top 3 Advance To Feature): Whiseant,Mason,O'Neal,Eaglin,Blackwell,Riggs,Millican, Noonan,White,Morgan

"B" Main # 1 (15 Laps-Top 2 Advance To Feature): Anderson,Birkhofer,Cook,Hackett,Shaver,Moon,Berck, Radich,J. Collins,Muzzin,Casebolt,Harvey,Sheltra,Purkey,Parker,Curry,Johnson,Hall,Pounds-NS,Durrett- NS,R. Smith-NS,D. Troutman-NS

"B" Main # 2 (15 Laps-Top 2 Advance To Feature): Stone,Crouse,Eaglin,Morris,Morgan,Tankersley, Whitney,Van Wormer,Zidar,Drake,Nobles,D.J. Troutman,Conley,Blackwell,M. Collins,White,Riggs-NS, England-NS,Millican-NS,Noonan-NS,Patterson-NS

YJ STINGER EXTREME ENERGY DRINKS Heat Race Winners Dash (6 Laps-Finish Determines First Three Of Feature): Moran,Pearson Jr.,Franklin,Carrier Jr.,Mars,Whiseant

Donn Goodson Farms Memorial Strawberry Dash (6 Laps-Random Draw Of DNQ Drivers): Tankersley, J. Collins,Eaglin,Hall,Parker,Morgan

2004 Northern Xtreme DirtCar Series Point Standings (after 2-6-04)

1. #28M Jimmy Mars Elk Mound,WI 526
2. #19J Davey Johnson Greensburg,PA 468
3. # 1 Earl Pearson Jr. Jackosnville,FL 460
4. #25 Shane Clanton Locust Grove,GA 456
5. #15B Brian Birkhofer Muscatine,IA 426
6. #99 Donnie Moran Dresden,OH 422
7. #71 Don O'Neal Martinsville,IN 416
8. #72 John Mason Millersburg,OH 406
9. # 2 Dennis Franklin Gaffney,SC 402
10. #1K John Anderson Omaha,NE 398
11. # 9 Bill Drake Bloomington,IL 370
12. # 7 Matt Miller Waterville,OH 366
13. #70 Jeff Smith Dallas,NC 347
14. #14 Kyle Berck Marquette,NE 346
15. #32D Darren Miller Chadwick,IL 344
16. #07 Kelly Boen Henderson,CO 332
17. #59 Bill Cunningham Jefferson,OH 328
18. # 7 Dave Troutman Hyndman,PA 325
19. # 0 Steve Shaver Vienna,WV 315
20. #53 Ray Cook Brasstown,NC 310
21. #70 Jeff Choquette West Palm Beach,FL 302
22. #28 Eddie Carrier Jr. Ona,WV 301
#C9 Steve Casebolt Richmond,IN 301
24. #A1 Duke Whiseant Texarkana,AR 299
25. #21D Dan Stone Thompson,PA 287

2004 Northern Xtreme DirtCar Series "Rookie of the Year" Point Standings after 2-6-04

1. #34J John Whitney (R) Cincinnati,OH 273
#2* D.J. Troutman (R) Hyndman,PA 273
3. #64 Sean Cosgrove (R) Catharpin,VA 267
4. #00 Richard Smith (R) Science Hill,KY 240

February 5, 2004
Bret Emrick

Tampa(Gibsonton),FL 2-5-04

John Mason of Millersburg,OH captured his career first Stacker2 Xtreme DirtCar Series sanctioned victory Thursday earning a well deserved $7,000 on the fourth of six nights of action in the "YJ Stinger 28th Annual Winternationals" at East Bay Raceway Park in Tampa (Gibsonton),FL. The 50 lap feature event saw Mason race three-wide with Jimmy Mars and Earl Pearson Jr. on laps 13 and 14 before grabbing the lead for good on lap 15. Mason then held off Pearson Jr. by four car lengths to score his first ever win at East Bay Raceway Park in his 32 year racing career.

Mars, who lead laps 3 - 14, wound up third with 13th starting Scott Pounds fourth and 18th starting Brian Birkhofer fifth. Rounding out the top ten finishers were 15th starting Donnie Moran in sixth followed by 22nd starting Dennis "Rambo" Franklin, 14th starting Al Purkey, pole setter Shane Clanton and Eddie Carrier Jr.

"This is simply unreal!", stated the very happy driver of the Bert Transmission No. 72 Mason Racin',Inc. Rayburn/Malcuit/Monte Carlo. "We knew we had a fast car but it was just a little bit too tight at the beginning of the race. Then the track came to us and this Rayburn race car just flat hooked up and went. Racing three-wide with Jimmy and Earl for two laps was a real thrill. And, I knew that those are two class racers who will race you hard but race you clean. I know from my vantage point it was exciting and it had to have been exciting for the fans as well. To see the leaders race three-wide for two consecutive laps like that had to have given the fans they're monies worth tonight."

When asked his thoughts of what it felt like to finally win a big national event after a long drought of not winning Mason said, "It feels absolutely wonderful. I've been doing this for over 30 years and we have had our success but it has been a long time since we won a national sanctioned event. Give credit where it's due. My daughter Carri, who is my crew chief, is just ecstatic right now and to see her have these feelings means more to me than the win to be honest with you. But, the other folks who came down to help this week deserve credit also. They have worked their butts off this week. And, I have to say that the Goodyear Eagles have performed beyond what many of us thought. I'm sold on them. Goodyear has done their homework and with the new program it has definitely evened the playing field. Actually, the whole Stacker2 Xtreme DirtCar Series program is what this sport has needed for so long. I'm proud to be a part of it."

Pole sitter Clanton and Mars brought the field to the green flag with Clanton powering into the lead off of turn two ahead of Mars. Roger Crouse slapped the outside retaining wall exiting turn two while working lap 2 breaking his steering and sending him across the track where he gathered up Wednesday's Northern Xtreme DirtCar Series winner Kyle Berck and Jeff Smith. Both Crouse and Berck were eliminated from the race. Clanton got the jump on Mars for the restart leading one more lap until Mars powered past Clanton exiting turn four to lead lap three. Caution for a Jeff Smith spin before lap 4 could be recorded and another caution on lap 4 for Matt Miller's spin slowed the pace.

Mars pulled away from the field on the double-file restart with Pearson Jr. shuffling past Clanton for second with Mason now fourth after starting seventh with Carrier Jr. sitting fifth. Pearson Jr. closed to within a car length of Mars by lap 8 and actually passed Mars for the lead on lap 9 but a spin in turn four involving Davey Johnson and Shane Tankersley negated the pass for the lead by Pearson Jr. and gave Mars the top spot back for the restart. By lap 11 Mason had moved past Clanton for third and began to reel in Pearson Jr. and Mars using the outer groove of the lightning-quick speedway. Lap 12 saw Mason move in on Pearson Jr. who was running the middle groove and Mars who was on the bottom. Exiting turn four Pearson Jr. shot to the bottom with Mars moving to the top with Mason taking the middle as they trio crossed the stripe in a virtual dead heat on lap 13. The three cars stayed door to door to door for the next two circuits until Mason powered into the lead which he would never give up.

Mason quickly opened up some distance on his pursuers using the extreme outside groove of the speedway. Mars and Pearson Jr. hooked up in a classic battle for the runner-up spot with Pearson Jr. working his way past Mars on lap 27 after a lap 26 restart when D.J. Miller slowed with an overheated engine. Mars would work his way past Pearson Jr. for the runner-up spot on lap 35 but saw Pearson Jr. regain the position back after a lap 36 restart. Behind the top three cars the racing was intense with drivers using all three grooves of the speedway to thrill the fans. With 10 laps to go in the race Mason was pretty much on his way to the win while Pearson Jr. and Mars kept up their battle for the second position. Pounds worked his way into fourth on lap 41 after a spirited duel with Purkey. Birkhofer, Franklin and Moran had their own battle going over the final circuits with Birkhofer and Moran nailing the fifth spot and sixth spot respectively on the final lap.

The $31,000 plus purse brought 58 drivers to the semi-banked 1/3rd mile track with Pearson Jr. earning the RINGERS GLOVES Fast Time Award in time trials with his fast lap of 15.186 seconds. Heat race wins fell to Pearson Jr., Jeep Van Wormer, Matt Miller, Mars, Carrier Jr. and Clanton. Taking the "B" Main events were Davey Johnson and Pete Parker while Clanton copped the YJ STINGER EXTREME ENERGY DRINK Dash and the Donn Goodson Farms Memorial Strawberry Dash went to Kelly Boen. Billy Drake had finished second in the first "B" Main event but was disqualified when he failed to make the minimum weight. A fuel line had loosened during the race causing more fuel to be used than what was planned.

The Stacker2 Xtreme DirtCar Series will wrap up the "YJ Stinger 28th Annual Winternationals" Saturday, Feb. 7 with a complete racing program on tap highlighted with a 75 lap -$15,000 to win main event. The cameras of Speed Channel will be on hand to tape the action with the broadcast set for February 28th at 3:00pm. As well Saturday, NASCAR Busch Series driver Kenny Wallace, who pilots the Stacker 2 Busch Series machine, will be on hand to sign autographs. Serving as grand marshall of the event will be WWE Diva Superstar Sable who also will sign autographs. And, the Goodyear blimp will make it's first ever appearance at a dirt shorttrack in it's long history Saturday. The action will also be broadcast over the world-wide-web (RSBN.net) starting at 9:30pm EST. For more information phone East Bay Raceway Park at 813-677-7223, toll free at 877-457-5611 or visit the EBRP website located at www.eastbayracewaypark.com.

Stacker2 Xtreme DirtCar Series Race Report For 2-5-05

Round 2-2004 Season-"YJ Stinger 28th Annual Winternationals"

East Bay Raceway Park-Tampa (Gibsonton),FL-1/3rd Mile Oval

$31,500 Purse-$7,000 To Win-50 Lap Feature

Showing Finish Pos.,Start Pos.,Car #,Driver,Laps Completed,Reason Out (if any) and Purse Money Won

1. (7) #72 John Mason 50 Running $7,000
2. (5) # 1 Earl Pearson Jr. 50 Running $4,100
3. (2) #28M Jimmy Mars 50 Running $2,850
4. (13) #1X Scott Pounds 50 Running $2,000
5. (18) #15B Brian Birkhofer 50 Running $1,750
6. (15) #99 Donnie Moran 50 Running $1,500
7. (22) #2F Dennis Franklin 50 Running $1,300
8. (14) #33P Al Purkey 50 Running $1,200
9. (1) #25 Shane Clanton (R) 50 Running $1,000
10. (3) #28 Eddie Carrier Jr. (R) 50 Running $ 900
11. (23) # 0 Steve Shaver 50 Running $ 800
12. (4) # 7 Matt Miller 50 Running $ 800
13. (21) #00 Richard Smith 50 Running $ 600
14. (13) #1x1 Sonny Conley 50 Running $ 550
15. (20) #10 Pete Parker 50 Running $ 525
16. (24) #T31 Shane Tankersley 50 Running $ 500
17. (12) #A1 Duke Whiseant (R) 49 Running $ 500
18. (19) #19J Davey Johnson 35 Mechanical $ 500
19. (11) #1DJ D.J. Miller 25 Cooling $ 500
20. (6) #55 Jeep Van Wormer 14 Accident $ 600
21. (10) #9Z Jayme Zidar 14 Accident $ 500
22. (9) #70 Jeff Smith 3 Mechanical $ 500
23. (8) #32 Roger Crouse 1 Accident $ 500
24. (16) #14 Kyle Breck 1 Accident $ 500

Time Of Race: 37 Mins. 15 Secs.
Yellow Flags: Six: Laps 1,4,9,15,26,36
Red Flags: None
Lap Leaders: Three: Clanton 1-2, Mars 3-14, Mason 15-50
GEMINI AUTO CARE CENTERS "Hard Charger of the Race": Franklin (Advanced 15 Positions)
LUCAS OIL "Rookie of the Race": Clanton
Provisional Starters: Shaver,Tankersley
Car Count: 58
RINGERS GLOVES "Fast Time Award": Pearson Jr. 15.186 secs.
Heat Race Winners: Pearson Jr., Jeep Van Wormer, Matt Miller, Mars, Carrier Jr., Clanton
"B" Main Winners: Johnson, Parker
YJ STINGER EXTREME ENERGY DRINKS Dash Winner: Clanton
Donn Goodson Farms Memorial Strawberry Dash Winner: Kelly Boen

SUMMARY - RINGERS GLOVES Time Trials:

Showing Pos.,Car #,Driver,Residence,Sponsor,Chassis/Engine/Body Style, First Lap, Second Lap, Fast Lap

1. # 1 Earl Pearson Jr. Jacksonville,FL Lucas Oil-Dunn Benson Ford Rocket/Larry Wallace/Taurus 15.518 15.186 15.186
2. #55 Jeep Van Wormer (R) Pinconning,MI Bayline Fire Protection Warrior/Cornett/Taurus 15.377 15.407 15.377
3. # 7 Matt Miller Waterville,OH McCullough Motorsports Rocket/Russell Baker/Grand Prix 15.754 15.531 15.531
4. #28M Jimmy Mars Elk Mound,WI Stacker 2 MasterSbilt/Pro Power/Monte Carlo 15.643 15.573 15.573
5. #28 Eddie Carrier Jr. (R) Ona,WV Grover Motorsports Rocket/Grover/Taurus 15.962 15.682 15.682
6. #A1 Duke Whiseant (R) Texarkana,AR A1 Auto Salvage Rayburn/Pro Power/Monte Carlo 15.721 16.061 15.721
7. #1X Scott Pounds Seymour,TN Milodon Warrior/Watkins/Monte Carlo 16.200 15.741 15.741
8. #32 Roger Crouse Plant City,FL Coastal Trucking Rocket/RaceTek 16.646 15.751 15.751
9. #32D Darren Miller (R) Chadwick,IL Seubert Calf Ranches Rocket/Pro Power/Taurus 16.234 15.765 15.765
10. #10 Pete Parker Kaukauna,WI Potowatomi Bingo Casino Lodge Reliable/Travis Kern/Grand Prix 15.841 16.026 15.841
11. #1DJ D.J. Miller Wooster,OH Bariod Drilling Fluids Rocket/Eicholtz/Monte Carlo 15.872 16.379 15.872
12. #70C Jeff Choquette (R) West Palm Beach,FL Ron Arrowood Rocket/Progressive/Grand Prix 16.236 15.942 15.942
13. #72 John Mason Millersburg,OH Bert Transmission Rayburn/Malcuit/Monte Carlo 16.030 15.981 15.981
14. #00 Richard Smith Science Hill,KY Donnie Smith Auto Sales Swartz/Cropper/Grand Prix 15.987 16.391 15.987
15. #70 Jeff Smith Dallas,NC Die Cast Digest Rocket/Gaerte/Monte Carlo 16.392 16.008 16.008
16. #9Z Jayme Zidar Greenfield,WI American Foundation Rayburn/Pro Power/Monte Carlo 16.664 16.009
17. #1M Mike Mataragas Dekalb,IL Peterson Aluminum Rayburn/Mataragas/Grand Prix 16.022 16.989 16.022
18. #15B Brian Birkhofer Muscatine,IA Double Eagle Racing Apparel MasterSbilt/Pro Power/Monte Carlo 16.023 16.405 16.023
19. #21D Dan Stone Thompson,PA NEP Telephone LazerG2/Rhodes/Monte Carlo 16.044 16.286 16.044
20. #33P Al Purkey Coffeyville,KS Larry Shaw Race Cars Shaw/Hatfield/Grand Prix 16.402 16.057 16.057
21. #59 Bill Cunningham Jefferson,OH JBR Graphics MasterSbilt/Craiger/Grand Prix 16.059 16.133 16.059
22. #69S Patrick Sheltra Indiantown,FL Helena Chemicals Co. Rocket/Draime/Grand Prix 16.060 16.110 16.060
23. #1x1 Sonny Conley New Martinsville,WV Conley Enterprises LazerG2/Emery/Monte Carlo 16.093 17.223 16.093
24. #25 Shane Clanton (R) Locust Grove,GA RSD Enterprises Rocket/Custom/Monte Carlo 16.093 16.157 16.093
25. #C9 Steve Casebolt Richmond,IN Seubert Calf Ranches Rocket/Pro Craft/Monte Carlo 16.094 16.152 16.094
26. # 0 Steve Shaver Vienna,WV Richard Construction Rocket/Malcuit/Monte Carlo 16.135 16.103 16.103
27. #99 Donnie Moran Dresden,OH QPI Tools MasterSbilt/SMS/Monte Carlo 16.178 NT 16.178
28. #14 Kyle Berck Marquette,NE Dorothy Lynch Homestyle Dressing Rocket/Wegner/Taurus 16.411 16.206
29. #7M Bryan Millican Cleveland,TX Star Homes Rocket/Russell Baker/Monte Carlo 16.785 16.243 16.243
30. #2F Dennis Franklin Gaffney,SC Hamrick's of Gaffney Rayburn/Cornett/Taurus 16.292 16.356 16.292
31. # 9 Billy Drake (R) Bloomington,IL MasterSbilt Race Cars MasterSbilt/Gaerte/Grand Prix 16.332 16.308 16.308
32. #1K John Anderson Omaha,NE THT Designs Rocket/Hatfield/Grand Prix 16.536 16.326 16.326
33. #53 Ray Cook Brasstown,NC Dodge-Bill Elliott Racing MasterSbilt/Gaerte/Intrepid R/T 16.326 16.471 16.326
34. #83 Joe Morris Galatia,IL Morris Excavating Rocket/Runyon/Grand Prix 16.338 16.812 16.338
35. #30 Mark Voigt Marine,IL Bilstein Shocks Rocket/Rhyne/Taurus 16.430 16.389 16.389
36. #07 Kelly Boen Henderson,CO Road Runner Fabrication Rocket/Dickens/Grand Prix 16.556 16.397 16.397
37. #19J Davey Johnson Greensburg,PA Reliable Painting MasterSbilt/Malcuit/Grand Prix 16.427 17.137 16.427
38. #T31 Shane Tankersley Morgonton,GA Hicks Specialty Welding Rocket/Gaerte/Grand Prix 16.560 17.216 16.560
39. #71 Don O'Neal Martinsville,IN A1 Auto Salvage Rayburn/Pro Power/Monte Carlo 16.756 16.564 16.564
40. #7C Jim Curry Norman,IN Jim Blackwell Trucking&Conveying Rayburn/Pro Power/Monte Carlo 17.076 16.589 16.589
41. # 5 Michael England Glasgow,KY Youngs-Hiseville Feed MasterSbilt/Pro Power/Monte Carlo 16.632 18.103 16.632
42. #56 Rohn Moon Greenwood,IN Creonix Rayburn/Moon Power/Monte Carlo 16.665 16.813 16.665
43. # 2 Anthony White Clinton,TN Stone Plus GRT/Vic Hill/Monte Carlo 17.156 16.829 16.829
44. #18 Steve Harvey Jacksonville,FL Harvey Motorsports GRT/Fox/Grand Prix 17.716 16.836 16.836
45. #58 Garrett Durrett (R) Simsboro,LA Garrett Racing Warrior/Pro Power/Taurus 16.881 17.421 16.881
46. #JO J.O. Nobles Nahunta,GA K&N Filters Warrior/Joel Nobles/Monte Carlo 17.250 16.921 16.921
47. #64 Sean Cosgrove Catharpin,VA Drywall Systems Rocket/Hershey/Grand Prix 17.053 18.958 17.053
48. #1N Casey Noonan Sylvania,OH Noonan's Performance Machining Rocket/Performance/Grand Prix 17.208 17.342 17.208
49. #H7 Phil Hall Mt. Airy,NC Mountain River Trucking Rocket/Custom/Monte Carlo 17.278 17.298 17.278
50. # 3 Mike Collins Council Bluffs,IA D&D Construction MasterSbilt/Charlie's/Grand Prix 17.688 17.304 17.304
51. #33 Chris Hackett Erie,PA Speciality Products Rocket/Tony Barker/Monte Carlo 17.644 17.377 17.377
52. #48 Tim Lance Mapleton,IL Digital Copy Rayburn/Pro Power/Taurus 18.595 17.427 17.427
53. #63 Rod Patterson Lansing,MI Herman's Direct Rocket/Dowker/Monte Carlo 18.654 17.294 17.294
54. #69 Terry Eaglin Versailles,IN Helena Chemicals Co. Rocket/Gaerte/Intrepid R/T 17.995 18.150 17.995
55. #74 Russ Adams Princeville,IL Digital Copy Rayburn/Pro Power/Monte Carlo 18.140 NT 18.140
56. #17 Frank Smith Mechanicsville,MD Auto Repair Center LazerG2/Campbell/Monte Carlo 18.203 NT 18.203
57. #81 Scott Riggs Harrisburg,IL Morris Excavting Rocket/Runyon/Grand Prix 19.397 18.580 18.580
58. #79 Vince Muzzin Jensen Beach,FL Muzzin Brothers Rocket/RaceTek/Grand Prix NT NT NT

Heat # 1 (10 Laps-Top 3 Advance To Feature): Pearson Jr.,Mason,Pounds,Johnson,Drake,Casebolt,Stone,White,Adams,Hall

Heat # 2 (10 Laps-Top 3 Advance To Feature):Van Wormer,Crouse,Purkey,R. Smith,Anderson,Shaver,Tankersley,Harvey, Collins,F. Smith

Heat # 3 (10 Laps-Top 3 Advance To Feature): M. Miller,J. Smith,Moran,O'Neal,Hackett,D. Miller,Cook,Durrett,Riggs, Cunningham

Heat # 4 (10 Laps-Top 3 Advance To Feature): Mars,Zidar,Berck,Parker,Sheltra,Morris,Muzzin,Curry,Lance,Nobles

Heat # 5 (10 Laps-Top 3 Advance To Feature): Carrier Jr.,D.J. Miller,Conley,Voigt,Millican,England,Patterson,Cosgrove, Mataragas

Heat # 6 (10 Laps-Top 3 Advance To Feature): Clanton,Whiseant,Birkhofer,Choquette,Franklin,Boen,Moon,Eaglin,Noonan

"B" Main # 1 (15 Laps-Top 2 Advance To Feature): Johnson,R. Smith,Cook,Hackett,Anderson,Tankersley,Durrett,White,

Collins,O'Neal,Stone,Casebolt,D. Miller,F. Smith,Adams,Cunningham,Hall,Riggs,Shaver,Drake-DQ (Light At Scales),

Harvey-NS

"B" Main # 2 (15 Laps-Top 2 Advance To Feature): Parker,Franklin,Choquette,Muzzin,Sheltra,Moon,Voigt,Boen,Patterson,

Noonan,Curry,England,Lance,Nobles,Millican,Morris,Cosgrove-NS,Eaglin-NS,Mataragas-NS

YJ STINGER EXTREME ENERGY DRINK Heat Winners Dash (6 Laps-Finish Determines First Three Rows Of Feature):

Clanton,Mars,Carrier Jr.,M. Miller,Pearson Jr.,Van Wormer

Donn Goodson Farms Memorial Strawberry Dash (10 Laps-Random Draw Of DNQ Drivers): Boen,Cook,Cunningham,White,

Nobles,Noonan,Mataragas,Morris,Hackett,Lance

2004 Stacker2 Xtreme DirtCar Series Point Standings (after 2-5-04)

1. #28M Jimmy Mars Elk Mound,WI 360
2. # 1 Earl Pearson Jr. Jacksonville,FL 347
3. #72 John Mason Millersburg,OH 316
4. #99 Donnie Moran Dresden,OH 309
5. #15B Brian Birkhofer Muscatine,IA 298
6. # 2 Dennis Franklin Gaffney,SC 292
7. #19J Davey Johnson Greensburg,PA 261
8. #28 Eddie Carrier Jr. (R) Ona,WV 261
9. # 7 Matt Miller Waterville,OH 254
10. #71 Don O'Neal Martinsville,IN 245
11. # 9 Billy Drake (R) Bloomington,IL 240
12. #T31 Shane Tankersley Morgonton,GA 236
13. #1x1 Sonny Conley New Martinsville,WV 232
14. # 0 Steve Shaver Vienna,WV 231
15. #14 Kyle Berck Marquette,NE 229
16. #A1 Duke Whiseant (R) Texarkana,AR 229
17. #55 Jeep Van Wormer (R) Pinconning,MI 226
18. #58 Garrett Durrett (R) Simsboro,LA 224
19. #25 Shane Clanton (R) Locust Grove,AR 224
20. #33 Al Purkey Coffeyville,KS 222
21. #70 Jeff Smith Dallas,NC 216
22. #32 Roger Crouse Plant City,FL 210
23. #9Z Jayme Zidar Greenfield,WI 204
24. #00 Richard Smith Science Hill,KY 204
25. #10 Pete Parker Kaukauna,WI 198
26. #1DJ D.J. Miller Wooster,OH 189
27. #79 Vince Muzzin Jensen Beach,FL 187
28. #53 Ray Cook Brasstown,NC 185
29. #1K John Anderson Omaha,NE 183
30. #32D Darren Miller (R) Chadwick,IL 160
31. #07 Kelly Boen Henderson,CO 160
32. #21D Dan Stone Thompson,PA 160
33. #70 Jeff Choquette (R) West Palm Beach,FL 160
34. #C9 Steve Casebolt Richmond,IN 160
35. #59 Bill Cunningham Jefferson,OH 160
36. #56 Rohn Moon Greenwood,IN 160
37. # 3 Mike Collins Council Bluffs,IA 160
38. #83 Joe Morris Galatia,IL 160
39. #33 Chris Hackett Erie,PA 160
40. # 2 Anthony White Clinton,TN 160
41. #48 Tim Lance Mapleton,IL 160
42. #1N Casey Noonan Sylvania,OH 160
43. #7M Bryan Millican Cleveland,TX 160
44. # 5 Michael England Glasgow,KY 160
45. #69 Terry Eaglin Versailles,IN 160
46. #30 Mark Voigt Marine,IL 160
47. #69S Patrick Sheltra Indiantown,FL 160
48. #7C Jim Curry Norman,IN 160
49. #63 Rod Patterson Lansing,MI 160
50. #74 Russ Adams Princeville,IL 160
51. #64 Sean Cosgrove Catharpin,VA 160
52. #1X Scott Pounds Seymour,TN 160
53. #12M Raymond Merrill Salisaw,OK 80
54. #29 Jerry Fifield Cross Junction,VA 80
55. #53T Lee Thomason Marion,IL 80
56. #7L Randy Lucas Apex,NC 80
57. #95 Steve Mathis Plant City,FL 80
58. #34J John Whitney Cincinnati,OH 80
59. #17 Steve Radich Tunnelton,WV 80
60. #50S Scott Morgan Orangeville,IL 80
61. #57M Mark Haase Tampa,FL 80
62. #H7 Phil Hall Mt. Airy,NC 80
63. #18 Steve Harvey Jacksonville,FL 80
64. #17 Frank Smith Mechanicsville,MD 80
65. #81 Scott Riggs Harrisburg,IL 80
66. #JO J.O. Nobles Nahunta,GA 80
67. #1M Mike Mataragas Dekalb,IL 80

February 4, 2004
Bret Emrick

Tampa (Gibsonton),FL 2-4-04

Kyle Berck of Marquette,NE rode the emotional roller-coaster Wednesday at East Bay Raceway Park in Tampa (Gibsonton),FL but came out on top in the Northern Xtreme DirtCar Series sanctioned 50 lap - $7,000 to win "28th Annual Winternationals". Berck started off the night heavily damaging his primary Dorothy Lynch Homestyle Dressing No. 14 Kyle Berck Racing Rocket/Wegner/Taurus in hot laps when he jumped the cushion in turn four, slapped the outside retaining wall and got nailed by Jimmy Mars who had no place to go and then took a second hit from Garrett Durrett.

Berck's crew brought out the back-up car which the friendly driver promptly qualified 11th with no practice laps. Berck then won his heat race and the YJ Stinger Extreme Energy Drinks dash to place him on the pole of the main event. On a lap 24 restart Berck went from leading the race to third when he bobbled in turn one. Berck worked his way back into second by lap 35 but was nearly one second behind race leader Don O'Neal when the racing gods smiled on Berck and frowned on O'Neal. O'Neal suddenly slowed in turn two when the left rear spring shot out from his car on lap 41 handing the lead back to Berck which he parlayed into victory in only his third ever race at the semi-banked 1/3rd mile.

"Welcome to East Bay", chuckled the very happy winner in victory lane. "Man, what a wild race. Everything just fell for our way. The crew is conditioned for a night like we had tonight. Three times before tonight we have had to go to the back-up car and each time we have come back to win. All the credit in the world goes to them. Getting this win is a dream come true for us. You just don't come to East Bay and expect to win the first time you've ever raced at the place. I've been coming here for 12 years as a fan and this year we decided that we were going to race. Our main goals coming in were to get laps and make a few races. But, to come in here and win in only your third race....You just don't do that here at East Bay."

When asked what happened on the lap 24 restart Berck related, "Driver error. I didn't get enough heat into the right front Goodyear Eagle during the caution laps and when I entered turn one the car just pushed up the track. I jumped on the brakes, stalled the car out, got it refired but by that time O'Neal and Matt Miller were by me. We weren't the fastest car out there tonight, O'Neal was. Then I saw the spring fall from his car and thought to myself, 'You gotta' be kidding me'. What a roller-coaster night!"

Davey Johnson who started 23rd roared to a runner-up showing with 15th starting Jeff Smith third, 18th starting Billy Drake fourth and Jimmy Mars fifth. Rounding out the top ten were Matt Miller in sixth followed by Ray Cook, 19th starting Brian Birkhofer, Shane Clanton and Earl Pearson Jr.

Berck and Miller brought the 24 car starting field to the green flag with Berck getting the advantage over Miller but the yellow flag was quickly out when Garrett Durrett and Drake spun on the backchute bringing about a complete restart. Berck again got the jump on Miller leading the first lap with Cook third ahead of Donnie Moran and Dennis Franklin.

Berck opened up a five car advantage over Miller by lap 10 but entered lapped traffic one lap later allowing Miller to close on Berck. O'Neal, who had started 14th, broke into the top 5 on lap 15 and was up to fourth by lap 20 and then to third one circuit later. Moran worked his way past Cook for fourth on lap 22 with O'Neal taking the runner-up spot from Miller on lap 24. But before the halfway mark could be reached the yellow was waving when John Whitney spun in turn two.

The caution was out again on the restart when contact on the backchute sent Pearson Jr. spinning collecting the cars of Steve Casebolt, Durrett and Sonny Conley. On the second attempt at the lap 24 restart Berck entered turn one and slid up the track allowing O'Neal to become the new leader with Miller second ahead of Berck, Moran and Cook with Drake now sixth ahead of Franklin, Johnson, John Anderson and Clanton.

Drake worked his way past Cook for fifth on lap 29 but before lap 30 could be recorded the yellow was waving again when contact between Miller and Moran in turn four sent Moran spinning collecting Berck and Cook. Moran was charged with the caution while Berck and Cook were given their running positions back for the restart.

By lap 35 O'Neal was off and gone from his pursuers with Berck sitting second ahead of Drake, Johnson and Jeff Smith with Miller now sixth ahead of Cook, Franklin, Clanton and Mars. Johnson roared past Drake fro third one lap later and began to pressure Berck but the yellow waved again when Moran spun in turn two.

O'Neal checked out on the field on the restart and looked to be a sure winner. Lap 41 saw Al Purkey slow in turn one and roll to a stop in turn to bring out another caution. O'Neal suddenly slowed in turn one and came to a stop in turn two with the damaged left rear suspension. Berck unexpectedly was now the race leader again with Johnson hot on his tail. Johnson tried several times to work his way past Berck as the laps wound down but Berck kept the veteran driver behind him taking the win by nearly two car lengths.

The $31,000 plus purse brought 63 drivers to the speedway with Mars earning fast time with his quick lap of 14.938 seconds. Heat race wins fell to Mars, Pearson Jr., Moran, Cook, Berck and Miller with the "B" Main events falling to Brian Birkhofer and John Whitney. Berck captured the YJ STINGER EXTREME ENERGY DRINKS dash while the Donn Goodson Farms Memorial Strawberry Dash went to D.J. Troutman.

The Northern Xtreme DirtCar Series will close out their portion of the "28th Annual Winternationals" Friday, Feb. 6 headline by a 60 lap - $12,000 to win feature event. For more information phone East Bay Raceway Park at 813-677-7223, toll free at 877-457-5611 or visit the EBRP website located at www.eastbayracewaypark.com.

Northern Xtreme DirtCar Series Race Report For 2-4-04 Race No. 2-2004 Season-"28th Annual Winternationals" East Bay Raceway Park-Tampa (Gibsonton),FL-1/3rd Mile Oval $31,500 Purse-$7,000 To Win-50 Lap Feature

Showing Finish Pos.,Start Pos.,Car #, Driver, Laps Completed, Reason Out (if any) and Purse Money Won

1. (1) #14 Kyle Berck 50 Running $7,100
2. (23) #19J Davey Johnson 50 Running $4,000
3. (15) #70 Jeff Smith 50 Running $2,500
4. (18) # 9 Billy Drake 50 Running $1,500
5. (4) #28M Jimmy Mars 50 Running $1,300
6. (2) # 7 Matt Miller 50 Running $1,200
7. (3) #53 Ray Cook 50 Running $1,100
8. (19) #15B Brian Birkhofer 50 Running $900
9. (13) #25 Shane Clanton 50 Running $850
10. (6) # 1 Earl Pearson Jr. 50 Running $900
11. (10) #72 John Mason 50 Running $750
12. (7) #2F Dennis Franklin 50 Running $700
13. (5) #99 Donnie Moran 50 Running $750
14. (12) #1K John Anderson 50 Running $600
15. (22) #C9 Steve Casebolt 50 Running $550
16. (16) #7M Bryan Millican 50 Running $500
17. (20) #34J John Whitney (R) 49 Running $500
18. (17) #55 Jeep Van Wormer 49 Running $500
19. (24) #7T Dave Troutman 49 Running $500
20. (9) #1x1 Sonny Conley 47 Running $500
21. (14) #71 Don O'Neal 41 Suspension $500
22. (11) #33P Al Purkey 41 Mechanical $500
23. (8) #28 Eddie Carrier Jr. 34 Mechanical $500
24. (21) #58 Garrett Durrett 24 Accident $500

Time Of Race: 41 Mins. 10 Secs.
Yellow Flags: Six: Laps 0,24,24(rs),29,37,41
Red Flags: None
Lap Leaders: Two: Berck 1-24,O'Neal 25-41,Berck 42-50
GEMINI AUTO CARE CENTERS "Hard Charger of the Race": Johnson (advanced 21 positions)
"Rookie of the Race": Whitney
Provisional Starters: Johnson, Troutman
Car Count: 63
Time Trials Fast Qualifier: Mars 14.938 secs.
Heat Race Winners: Mars,Pearson Jr.,Moran,Cook,Berck,Miller
"B" Main Winners: Birkhofer,Whitney
YJ STINGER EXTREME ENERGY DRINKS Dash Winner: Berck
Donn Goodson Farms Memorial Strawberry Dash Winner: D.J. Troutman

Heat # 1 (10 Laps-Top 3 Advance To Feature): Mars,Franklin,Purkey,Johnson,Durrett,Shaver,Lance,Morris, Tankersley,F. Smith,White

Heat # 2 (10 Laps-Top 3 Advance To Feature): Pearson Jr.,Carrier Jr.,O'Neal,Cosgrove,Crouse,Blackwell, D.J. Troutman,Noonan,Patterson,Stone,Lucas-NS

Heat # 3 (10 Laps-Top 3 Advance To Feature): Moran,Van Wormer,Clanton,Birkhofer,Boen,Choquette, R. Smith,D. Troutman,Parker,Curry,Bernheisel-NS

Heat # 4 (10 Laps-Top 3 Advance To Feature): Cook,Mason,Millican,Zidar,Cunningham,Voigt,Whitney, Adams,Moon,Whiseant-NS

Heat # 5 (10 Laps-Top 3 Advance To Feature): Berck,Conley,J. Smith,Casebolt,England,Sheltra, D.J. Miller, Pounds,Riggs,Thomason-NS

Heat # 6 (10 Laps-Top 3 Advance To Feature): M. Miller,Anderson,Drake,Hackett,Hall,Muzzin,Eaglin, Collins,Fifield,D. Miller

"B" Main # 1 (15 Laps-Top 2 Advance To Feature): Birkhofer,Durrett,Johnson,Cosgrove,Shaver,Stone,D.J. Troutman,Curry,Crouse,Noonan,Patterson,Tankersley,Choquette,Boen,R. Smith,Blackwell,Lance,Morris, Parker,F. Smith,White,D. Troutman-NS,Lucas-NS,Bernheisel-NS

"B" Main # 2 (15 Laps-Top 2 Advance To Feature): Whitney,Casebolt,Zidar,Sheltra,Hackett,Pounds,D. Miller,Voigt,England,Moon,Adams,D.J. Miller,Muzzin,Collins,Fifield,Riggs,Cunningham,Hall,Eaglin, Whiseant-NS,Thomason-NS

YJ STINGER EXTREME ENERGY DRINKS Dash (6 Laps-Finish Determines First Three Rows Of Feature): Berck,M. Miller,Cook,Mars,Moran,Pearson Jr.

Donn Goodson Farms Memorial Strawberry Dash (7 Laps-Random Draw Of DNQ Cars): D.J. Troutman, Sheltra,D. Miller,Curry,Muzzin,Crouse,Fifield

Northern Xtreme DirtCar Series Point Standings (after 2-4-04)
( Top 25 )

1. #28M Jimmy Mars Elk Mound,WI 343
2. #19J Davey Johnson Greensburg,PA 330
3. #99 Donnie Moran Dresden,OH 301
4. # 9 Billy Drake Bloomington,IL 290
# 1 Earl Pearson Jr. Jacksonville,FL 290
6. #25 Shane Clanton Locust Grove,GA 286
7. #15B Brian Birkhofer Muscatine,IA 280
8. #71 Don O'Neal Martinsville,IN 274
9. #14 Kyle Berck Marquette,NE 266
10. #70 Jeff Smith Dallas,NC 264
11. # 7 Matt Miller Waterville,OH 263
12. #72 John Mason Millersburg,OH 251
13. #1K John Anderson Omaha,NE 248
14. # 2 Dennis Franklin Gaffney,SC 242
15. # 0 Steve Shaver Vienna,WV 235
16. #53 Ray Cook Brasstown,NC 230
17. #70 Jeff Choquette West Palm Beach,FL 222
18 #C9 Steve Casebolt Richmond,IN 221
19. # 7 Dave Troutman Hyndman,PA 220
20. #32D Darren Miller Chadwick,IL 214
21. #59 Bill Cunningham Jefferson,OH 204
22. #07 Kelly Boen Hendrson,CO 198
23. # 7 Bryan Millican Cleveland,TX 195
24. #34J John Whitney (R) Cincinnati,OH 193
25. #2* D.J. Troutman (R) Hyndman,PA 193

February 3, 2004
Bret Emrick

Tampa (Gibsonton),FL 2-3-04

Jimmy Mars of Elk Mound,WI captured the 2004 season opening Stacker 2 Xtreme DirtCar Series sanctioned event at East Bay Raceway Park in Tampa (Gibsonton),FL Tuesday pocketing $5,000 for the second night of the "28th Annual Winternationals". Starting from the pole position in the 40 lap main event the driver of the Stacker 2/Heeg Well Drilling/Deppe Enterprises No. 28M Jimmy Mars Racing MasterSbilt Race Cars/Pro Power Racing/Chevrolet Monte Carlo led all the way for his second straight victory in the "Winternationals". Mars also captured Monday's Northern Xtreme DirtCar Series opener at the semi-banked 1/3rd mile speedway.

Earl Pearson Jr. rode home second nearly six car lengths behind Mars with Don O'Neal third, Billy Drake fourth and Donnie Moran fifth. Completing the top ten finishers were Davey Johnson in sixth with Dennis Franklin seventh then Garrett Durrett, Brian Birkhofer and John Mason.

"The car was so much better tonight", stated the very happy Mars. "Last night the car was just so tight that it was a handful. We worked on loosening it up a bit for tonight and we hit on it. The car was just simply awesome tonight. I have to thank my brother Chris and the rest of the guys on the crew. They really have worked hard to get ready for the 'Winternationals' and down here as well. I have to thank Stacker 2, Heeg Well Drilling, Deppe Enterprises and T.L Sinz Plumbing for all their support. The Goodyear tires have worked so well for us. I'm really excited with our start to the season and hope we can keep it going."

Mars and Pearson Jr. brought the 24 car starting field to the green flag with Mars winning the drag race into turn one to grab the lead. With one lap in the books Mars held a two car advantage over third starting Moran, Pearson Jr., Durrett and seventh starting Kyle Berck. Moran stayed with Mars for lap 2 but on lap 3 Pearson Jr. took advantage of a slight bobble by Moran to grab the runner-up spot. Before lap 4 could be recorded Vince Muzzin lost control of his mount exiting turn four and spun to a stop bringing out the caution flag.

Mars again got the advantage on Pearson Jr. and the rest of the field on the restart jumping out to a healthy margin. Lap 6 saw Steve Shaver explode past Durrett for fifth and Berck for fourth and immediately move in on Moran. Contact in turn one between the two sent both cars spinning and collected several other cars in the melee. All but Shaver and Jayme Zidar were able to rejoin the race after heading pitside to repair damages.

Once the race restarted Mars again showed his dominance pulling away from his pursuers. But, the battle behind Mars for position was incredible. By lap 13 Mars was lapping the backmarkers in the field with Pearson Jr. still second with Berck now third ahead of O'Neal and Drake.

At the halfway mark Mars enjoyed a seven car advantage over Pearson Jr. with O'Neal now third and putting pressure on Pearson Jr. Drake ran fourth with Moran back up to fifth followed by Durrett in sixth with Birkhofer seventh then Franklin, Johnson and Mason.

Moran worked his way past Drake for fourth on lap 21 using the outside groove of the ultra-quick clay track. Moran began to pressure O'Neal for the third spot racing side by side with O'Neal for several laps until Moran slipped a bit exiting turn two on on lap 30 allowing Drake to work his way back into fourth.

The final 10 laps saw Mars enter heavy lapped traffic allowing Pearson Jr. to close to within three car lengths of the leader. Mars quickly worked his way through the slower traffic while Pearson Jr. now had his hands full giving Mars the opportunity to stretch his lead once again. Once clear of the traffic the laps had run out for Pearson Jr. to do anything with Mars.

The $24,000 purse event attracted 60 drivers to EBRP with Brian Birkhofer earning the RINGERS GLOVES "Fast Time Award" during time trials circling the speedway in 14.903 seconds. Grabbing heat race wins were Birkhofer, Pearson Jr., Duke Whiseant, Mars, Durrett and Moran. The "B" Main events fell to Johnson and Matt Miller with the YJ STINGER EXTREME ENERGY DRINKS Dash falling to Mars and the Donn Goodson Farms Memorial Strawberry dash fell to Shane Clanton.

The Stacker 2 Xtreme DirtCar Series will sanction night No. 4 of the "28th Annual Winternationals" Thursday night with a 50 lap - $7,000 to win feature event. For more information phone East Bay Raceway Park at 813-677-7223, toll free at 877-457-5611 or visit the EBRP website located at www.eastbayracewaypark.com.

Stacker 2 Xtreme DirtCar Series Race Report For 2-3-04 Round No. 1-2004 Season-"28th Annual Winternationals" East Bay Raceway Park-Tampa (Gibsonton),FL-1/3rd Mile Oval $24,000 Purse-$5,000 To Win-40 Lap Feature Event

Showing Finish Pos.,Start Pos.,Car #,Driver,Laps Completed,Reason Out (if any) and Purse Money Won

1. (1) #28M Jimmy Mars 40 Running $5,100
2. (2) # 1 Earl Pearson Jr. 40 Running $3,100
3. (10) #71 Don O'Neal 40 Running $2,000
4. (8) # 9 Billy Drake (R) 40 Running $1,500
5. (3) #99 Donnie Moran 40 Running $1,100
6. (19) #19J Davey Johnson 40 Running $900
7. (13) #2F Dennis Franklin (R) 40 Running $850
8. (5) #58 Garrett Durrett (R) 40 Running $900
9. (4) #15B Brian Birkhofer 40 Running $850
10. (21) #72 John Mason 40 Running $700
11. (7) #14 Kyle Berck 40 Running $650
12. (15) #28 Eddie Carrier Jr. (R) 40 Running $600
13. (20) # 7 Matt Miller 40 Running $550
14. (18) #T31 Shane Tankersley 39 Running $500
15. (14) #55 Jeep Van Wormer 39 Running $500
16. (6) #A1 Duke Whiseant (R) 39 Running $600
17. (23) #70 Jeff Smith 39 Running $500
18. (17) #1x1 Sonny Conley 38 Running $500
19. (16) #32 Roger Crouse 37 Running $500
20. (11) #79 Vince Muzzin 37 Running $500
21. (24) #53 Ray Cook 13 Mechanical $500
22. (22) #1K John Anderson 8 Mechanical $500
23. (9) # 0 Steve Shaver 5 Accident $500
24. (12) #9Z Jayme Zidar 5 Accident $500

Time Of Race: 28 Mins.
Yellow Flags: Two: Laps 3, 5
Red Flags: None
Lap Leaders: One: Mars 1-40
GEMINI AUTO CARE CENTERS "Hard Charger of the Race": Johnson
LUCAS OIL "Rookie of the Race": Drake
Provisional Starters: Smith, Cook
Car Count: 60
RINGERS GLOVES "Fast Time Award": Birkhofer 14.903 secs.
Heat Race Winners: Birkhofer, Pearson Jr., Duke Whiseant, Mars, Durrett, Moran
"B" Main Winners: Johnson, Miller
YJ STINGER EXTREME ENERGY DRINKS Dash Winner: Mars Donn Goodson Farms Memorial Strawberry Dash Winner: Clanton

Heat # 1 (10 Laps-Top 3 Advance To Feature): Birkhofer,Berck,Franklin,Cook,Boen,Johnson,Morgan,R. Smith,England,Morris-NS

Heat # 2 (10 Laps-Top 3 Advance To Feature): Pearson Jr.,Drake,Van Wormer,Clanton,Eaglin,Stone,Collins, Whitney,Moon,Parker-NS

Heat # 3 (10 Laps-Top 3 Advance To Feature): Whiseant,Shaver,Carrier Jr.,Cunningham,Mason,Merrill, Purkey,Lance,Lucas,Hackett

Heat # 4 (10 Laps-Top 3 Advance To Feature): Mars,O'Neal,Crouse,M. Miller,White,Fifield,Radich,J. Smith,D. Miller,Voight

Heat # 5 (10 Laps-Top 3 Advance To Feature): Durrett,Muzzin,Conley,Thomason,Choquette,Sheltra,Millican, Mathis,Ward,Haase-NS

Heat # 6 (10 Laps-Top 3 Advance To Feature): Moran,Zidar,Tankersley,Anderson,Casebolt,D.J. Miller,Cosgrove,Curry,Patterson,Noonan

YJ STINGER EXTREME ENERGY DRINKS Dash (6 Laps-Finish Determines First Three Rows Of Feature): Mars,Pearson Jr.,Moran,Birkhofer,Durrett,Whiseant

Donn Goodson Farms Memorial Strawberry Dash (10 Laps For Randomly Drawn DNQ Drivers): Clanton,Cosgrove,Collins,Casebolt,R. Smith,Radich,Ward,Patterson,Morgan,Voight

"B" Main # 1 (15 Laps-Top 2 Advance To Feature): Johnson,Mason,Boen,Stone,Purkey,Eaglin,Whitney, R. Smith,Moon,Hackett,Collins,Morris,Cunningham,Clanton,Merrill,Cook,Parker,Morgan,Lucas,Lance, England-NS

"B" Main # 2 (15 Lap-Top 2 Advance To Feature): M. Miller,Anderson,Choquette,Casebolt,Mathis,D. Miller, Curry,Radich,Sheltra,Cosgrove,Patterson,Adams,Millican,D.J. Miller,Fifield,Voigt,Thomason,White,J. Smith- NS,Noonan-NS,Haase-NS

Stacker 2 Xtreme DirtCar Series Point Standings after 2-3-04

1. #28M Jimmy Mars Elk Mound,WI 186
2. # 1 Earl Pearson Jr. Jacksonville,FL 175
3. #71 Don O'Neal Martinsville,IN 165
4. # 9 Billy Drake (R) Bloomington,IL 160
5. #99 Donnie Moran Dresden,OH 159
6. #19J Davey Johnson Greensburg,PA 150
7. #2F Dennis Franklin (R) Gaffney,SC 146
8. #58 Garrett Durett (R) Simsboro,LA 144
9. #15B Brian Birkhofer Muscatine,IA 143
10. #72 John Mason Millersburg,OH 134
11. #14 Kyle Berck Marquette,NE 130
12. #28 Eddie Carrier Jr. (R) Ona,WV 127
13. # 7 Matt Miller Waterville,OH 124
14. #T31 Shane Tankersley Morgonton,GA 121
15. #55 Jeep Van Wormer (R) Pinconning,MI 118
16. #A1 Duke Whiseant (R) Texarkana,AR 116
17. #70 Jeff Smith Dallas,NC 113
18. #1x1 Sonny Conley New Martinsville,WV 111
19. #32 Roger Crouse Plant City,FL 109
20. #79 Vince Muzzin Jensen Beach,FL 107
21. #53 Ray Cook Brasstown,NC 105
22. #1K John Anderson Omaha,NE 103
23. # 0 Steve Shaver Vienna,WV 101
24. #9Z Jayme Zidar Greenfield,WI 99
25. #32D Darren Miller (R) Chadwick,IL 80

February 2, 2004
Bret Emrick

Tampa (Gibsonton),FL 2-2-04

Jimmy Mars of Elk Mound,WI opened up the 2004 Northern Xtreme DirtCar Series Monday at East Bay Raceway Park in Tampa (Gibsonton),FL with a thrilling photo finish victory over Donnie Moran. Mars led every lap of the 40 lap - $5,000 to win main event but it wasn't a cake walk by any stretch of the imagination. Mars felt constant pressure from Don O'Neal several times throughout the race and then had to contend Moran over the final five laps to secure the win in the opening night of the "28th Annual Winternationals". O'Neal rode home third with Davey Johnson fourth and Earl Pearson Jr. fifth. Rounding out the top ten finishers Steve Shaver in sixth followed by Shane Clanton, Jeff Choquette, Brian Birkhofer and Darren Miller.

"Man, was that a race of what?!", stated the very happy driver of the Stacker 2/Heeg Well Drilling/Deepe Industries No. 28M Mars Racing MasterSbilt Race Cars/Pro Power Chevrolet Monte Carlo. "I tried to protect the bottom so much that I think I messed myself up a few times. O'Neal was all over me several times and that one time I hit the inside berm too hard which washed the car up the track and Don just about got me. I was so concerned with protecting the bottom from O'Neal that I had no idea that Donnie was on the outside the last five laps. Coming in for the checkered I pinched the car because it was getting tighter and tighter and again we washed up the track and all of sudden I saw Moran underneath of me. Some how, some way we beat him back to the line."

When asked his opinion of the performance of the series mandated Goodyear tires Mars said, "If anybody doubts these tires just show them a tape of this race. The Goodyear tires have leveled the playing field and the competition the fans saw tonight just goes to show that this may very well be the most competitive season any of us have seen. Anyone can win these races now. Anyone."

Mars and Shaver brought the 24 car starting field to the green flag with Mars winning the drag race into turn one over Shaver. Mars held a two car advantage over Shaver at the end of the first lap with O'Neal, Moran and Clanton trailing.

O'Neal worked his way underneath Shaver for second on lap 3 and began to reel in Mars. Moran also passed Shaver dropping the outside pole sitter to fourth. Johnson used a nifty move in turn three to grab fifth from Clanton on lap 5 but before lap 6 could be recorded the yellow was waving for Steve Casebolt who jumped the cushion in turn four and slapped the outside wall suffering heavy damage to his race car.

Mars and O'Neal took off on the restart and began their struggle for the lead. O'Neal made a bid for the lead on lap 13 as the lead duo moved around the lapped car of Matt Miller. But, Mars held the lead when the yellow waved again on for a slowing Dennis Franklin who suffered a flat right rear tire.

Mars and O'Neal continued their torrid battle once the race restarted and behind them the battle for third on back was intense to say the least. Shaver worked his way back past Johnson on lap 16 only to have Johnson grab the spot back four laps later. At the halfway point Mars and O'Neal were nose to tail with Moran four car lengths behind the leaders with Johnson fourth and Shaver fifth followed by Pearson Jr., Clanton, Choquette, Miller and Birkhofer.

Lap 24 saw O'Neal make another bid for the lead as Mars had to give up the bottom in turn three with the lapped car of Dave Troutman directly in front of the two top runners. O'Neal shot underneath of Troutman as Mars went to the highside keeping his lead by inches over O'Neal. Pearson Jr. who had grabbed fifth from Shaver on lap 21 was now closing quickly on Johnson while Moran kept a one car advantage over Johnson. Caution on lap 28 for a slowing Troutman brought out the races third yellow flag period.

On the restart Mars was able to put a little distance on O'Neal who now had his hands full with Moran. Lap 30 saw Johnson sweep past Moran for third. Mars kept opening up more ground on O'Neal as the laps wound down but that all changed on lap 35 when the caution waved for D.J. Troutman who broke the right rear suspension.

Mars and O'Neal hooked up in a torrid battle for the lead over the final five circuits but the driver on the move was Moran. Moran jumped to the top groove of the racetrack grabbing third from Johnson on lap 38. Moran kept his outside assault taking second from O'Neal with the white flag waving and began to move in on Mars. Entering turn three Mars tried to keep his car on the bottom but the car slid wide in turn four and Moran cut his car to the bottom pulling even with Mars as they exited turn four for the checkered flag. Mars stayed on the gas as did Moran with Mars just taking the win by mere inches.

The $24,000 purse attracted 64 drivers to the semi-banked 1/3rd mile speedway with Moran earning the fast time award with his quick lap of 15.094 seconds. Heat race wins fell to Moran, Matt Miller, O'Neal, Clanton, Shaver and Mars. Scoring wins in the "B" Main events were Darren Miller and Steve Casebolt while Mars copped the YJ Stinger Extreme Energy Drink dash and the Donn Goodson Memorial Strawberry dash fell to Al Purkey.

Northern Xtreme DirtCar Series Race Report For 2-2-04 Race No. 1-2004 Season-"28th Annual Winternationals" East Bay Raceway Park-Tampa (Gibsonton),FL-1/3rd Mile Oval $24,000 Purse-$5,000 To Win-40 Lap Feature

Showing Finish Pos.,Start Pos.,Car #, Driver, Laps Completed, Reason Out (if any) and Purse Money Won

1. (1) #28M Jimmy Mars 40 Running $5,100
2. (4) #99 Donnie Moran 40 Running $3,100
3. (3) #71 Don O'Neal 40 Running $2,100
4. (8) #19J Davey Johnson 40 Running $1,500
5. (9) # 1 Earl Pearson Jr. 40 Running $1,000
6. (2) # 0 Steve Shaver 40 Running $1,000
7. (5) #25 Shane Clanton 40 Running $950
8. (12) #70C Jeff Choquette 40 Running $800
9. (11) #15B Brian Birkhofer 40 Running $750
10. (18) #32D Darren Miller 40 Running $700
11. (16) # 9 Billy Drake 40 Running $650
12. (14) #1K John Anderson 40 Running $600
13. (23) #59 Bill Cunningham 40 Running $550
14. (20) #72 John Mason 40 Running $500
15. (17) #07 Kelly Boen 40 Running $500
16. (13) #2F Dennis Franklin 39 Running $500
17. (15) #2* D.J. Troutman 35 Suspension $500
18. (22) #7T Dave Troutman 30 Mechanical $500
19. (21) #A1 Duke Whiseant 12 Mechanical $500
20. (6) # 7 Matt Miller 12 Mechanical $600
21. (10) # 2 Anthony White 10 Mechanical $500
22. (19) #C9 Steve Casebolt 5 Accident $500
23. (24) #1M Mike Mataragas 1 Mechanical $500*
24. (7) #70 Jeff Smith 0 Accident $500
* Mataragas scheduled to start 13th used back-up car and had to start 24th

Time Of Race: 28 Mins.
Yellow Flags: Four, Laps 5,13,28,35
Red Flags: None
Lap Leaders: One, Mars 1-40
GEMINI AUTO CARE CENTERS "Hard Charger of the Race": Cunningham (10 positions advanced)
"Rookie of the Race": D.J. Troutman
Provisional Starters: Dv. Troutman,Cunningham
Car Count: 64
Time Trials Fast Qualifier: Moran 15.094 secs. 89.440mph
Heat Race Winners: Moran,M. Miller,O'Neal,Clanton,Shaver,Mars
"B" Main Winners: D. Miller,Casebolt
YJ STINGER EXTREME ENERGY DRINKS Dash Winner: Mars
Donn Goodson Memorial Strawberry Dash Winner:

Heat # 1 (10 Laps-Top 3 Advance To Feature): Moran,J. Smith,Mataragas,Morris,Mason,Tankersley,Carrier Jr.,Collins,Morgan,Cosgrove,Riggs

Heat # 2 (10 Laps-Top 3 Advance To Feature): M. Miller,Johnson,Franklin,D. Miller,Cunningham,Noonan,Berck, Patterson,Harvey,Eaglin,Hackett

Heat # 3 (10 Laps-Top 3 Advance To Feature): O'Neal,Pearson Jr.,Anderson,D.J. Miller,Parker,Muzzin,Merrill, Sheltra,Crouse,Adams,Cook-NS

Heat # 4 (10 Laps-Top 3 Advance To Feature): Clanton,White,D.J. Troutman,Lance,Durrett,Carney,Fifield, Thomason,Moon,Curry,Bernheisel-NS

Heat # 5 (10 Laps-Top 3 Advance To Feature): Shaver,Birkhofer,Drake,Whiseant,Zidar,Millican,Rushing Jr., Conley,D. Troutman,R. Smith

Heat # 6 (10 Laps-Top 3 Advance To Feature): Mars,Choquette,Boen,Casebolt,Stone,Whitney,F. Smith,Van Wormer,Purkey,Blackwell

"B" Main # 1(15 Laps-Top 2 Advance To Feature): D. Miller,Mason,Cunningham,Parker,Berck,Merrill,D.J. Miller, Morgan,Eaglin,Collins,Hackett,Muzzin,Patterson,Morris,Carrier Jr.,Noonan,Riggs,Harvey,Tankersley,Cosgrove, Adams,Sheltra-NS,Crouse-NS,Cook-NS

"B" Main # 2 (15 Laps-Top 2 Advance To Feature): Casebolt,Whiseant,Stone,Zidar,Whitney,Moon,Durrett, MIllican,R. Smith,Thomason,Fifield,Conley,Carney,Lance,Rushing Jr.,D. Troutman,F. Smith-NS,Van Wormer-NS, Purkey-NS,Curry-NS,Blackwell-NS,Bernheisel-NS

"YJ STINGER EXTREME ENERGY DRINKS Dash (6 Laps-Finish Determines First Three Rows Of Feature): Mars,Shaver,O'Neal,Moran,Clanton,M. Miller Donn Goodson Memorial Strawberry Dash (9 Laps- Random draw of DNQ cars): Purkey,Millican,Rushing Jr., Whitney,Stone,Zidar,Carney,D.J. Miller,Moon

Northern Xtreme DirtCar Series Point Standings (after 2-2-04)

1. #28M Jimmy Mars Elk Mound,WI 180
2. #99 Donnie Moran Dresden,OH 172
3. #71 Don O'Neal Martinsville,IN 165
4. #19J Davey Johnson Greensburg,PA 160
5. # 1 Earl Pearson Jr. Jacksonville,FL 155
6. # 0 Steve Shaver Vienna,WV 150
7. #25 Shane Clanton Locust Grove,GA 146
8. #70C Jeff Choquette West Palm Beach,FL 142
9. #15B Brian Birkhofer Muscatine,IA 138
10. #32D Darren Miller Chadwick,IL 134
11. # 9 Billy DRake Bloomington,IL 130
12. #1K John Anderson Omaha,NE 127
13. #59 Bill Cunningham Jefferson,OH 124
14. #72 John Mason Millersburg,OH 121
15. #07 Kelly Boen Hendrson,CO 118
16. #2F Dennis Franklin Gaffney,SC 115
17. #2* D.J. Troutman (R) Hyndman,PA 113
18. #7T Dave Troutman Hyndman,PA 111
19. #A1 Duke Whiseant Texarkana,AR 109
20. # 7 Matt Miller Waterville,OH 107
21. # 2 Anthony White Clinton,TN 105
22. #C9 Steve Casebolt Richmond,IN 103
23. #1M Mike Mataragas Dekalb,IL 101
24. #70 Jeff Smith Dallas,NC 99
25. #21D Dan Stone Thompson,PA 80

Northern Xtreme DirtCar Series Dash Points (after 2-2-04)

1. #28M Jimmy Mars Elk Mound,WI 6
2. # 0 Steve Shaver Vienna,WV 5
3. #71 Don O'Neal Martinsville,IN 4
4. #99 Donnie Moran Dresden,OH 3
5. #25 Shane Clanton Locust Grove,GA 2
6. # 7 Matt Miller Waterville,OH 1

1. #28M Jimmy Mars Elk Mound,WI

January 28, 2004
Bret Emrick

Shelby,NC 1-28-04

The final night of the week long Stacker 2 Xtreme DirtCar Series and Northern Xtreme DirtCar Series sanctioned "meat-grinder" known as the "28th Annual Winternationals" at East Bay Raceway Park In Tampa (Gibsonton),FL February 2 - 7 will now have some added luster to the event. WWE Diva Superstar Sable will be at the semi-banked 1/3rd mile speedway Saturday, Feb. 7 from 4:00 - 6:45 pm to meet the fans and race teams and participate in the pre-race ceremonies. The lovely and sultry Sable is a fan favorite and one of the most popular entertainers of World Wrestling Entertainment.

Sable will meet the drivers and race teams in the pit area from 4:00pm - 4:45pm before moving to the Stacker 2 "YJ Stinger Splash Of Energy Tour" interactive fan display to sign autographs from 5:00pm - 5:45pm. Sable will then participate in the pre-race ceremonies beginning at 6:00pm for the 75 lap - $15,000 to win Stacker 2 Xtreme DirtCar Series sanctioned main event.

A complete racing program of time trials, qualifying heats, "B" Mains, dashes and feature races are on tap each night of the "Winternationals". Over $210,000 in total purse money has been posted by 2VHL Promotions, the management team at EBRP, for the race teams who annually flock to the clay oval. Add in the additional series money's offered and the totals in purse money and bonus money push the $225,000 mark for the week.

An "open practice session" has been scheduled for Sunday, February 1 to allow race teams to test the series mandated Goodyear tires. Several personnel and service technicians from the Goodyear Tire Company will be on hand for the practice session and throughout the week of the "28th Annual Winternationals". Pit gates for the practice session will open at 4:30pm with practice slated from 6:00pm to 10:00pm.

The schedule of events for all six days of the "Winternationals" will see Tech. inspection beginning at 11:00am and registration from 12:00 Noon to 2:00pm each day. The pit area will be cleared at 1:30pm each day with the pit gates re-opening at 2:00pm. Drivers meeting is set for 2:45pm with hot laps at 3:00pm followed immediately by time trials. Once time trials have been completed track preperation will take place, if needed. The racing program will begin with the heat races at 7:00pm followed by the "B" Mains, the heat race winners dash, the "Donn Goodson Memorial Strawberry Dashes" and then the feature event. The schedule may be adjusted throughout the week.

The Northern Xtreme DirtCar Series will open the "28th Annual Winternationals" Monday, Feb. 2 with a 40 lap feature event paying $5,000 to the winner from the more than $25,000 purse. The Stacker 2 Xtreme DirtCar Series takes center stage Tuesday, Feb. 3 with a $25,000 plus purse - 40 lap -$5,000 to win main event.

Wednesday, Feb. 4 features a 50 lap main event paying $7,000 to win from the $29,000 plus purse for the NXDCS. Another 50 lap main event paying $7,000 to win from a $31,000 purse is on tap for the Stacker 2 Xtreme DirtCar Series Thursday, Feb. 5.

The finale for the Northern Xtreme DirtCar Series happens Friday, Feb. 6 with $43,000 in purse money posted with $12,000 going to the winner of the 60 lap feature event. The final night of the "28th Annual Winternationals", Saturday, Feb. 7, will see the Stacker 2 Xtreme DirtCar Series battle it out before the Speed Channel cameras in a 75 lap feature event paying $15,000 to win from the more than $53,000 purse.

Several promotional venues for the legion of fans who descend upon East Bay Raceway Park will be happening through out the week:

Former NASCAR champion and multi-time fan voted "Most Popular NASCAR Driver" Bill Elliott, who will participate in a limited number of NASCAR Nextel Cup events in 2004, and Mark Martin, driver of the Viagara sponsered NASCAR Nextel Cup car, will sign autographs for the fans Tuesday, Feb. 3 at the Stacker 2 "YJ Stinger Splash Of Energy Tour" interactive fan display. Elliott will sign autographs starting at 3:00pm while Martin will greet the fans from 6:00pm to 7:45pm. Elliott will also be participating in several things while at East Bay Raceway Park including being the pilot for the "two-seater" DirtCar that will give media members, who attend Tuesday, an "up close and personal view" of the semi-banked 1/3rd mile speedway. Elliott will also be watching "The Tar Heel Tiger", Ray Cook, very closely. Elliott along with multi-time NASACAR champion crew chief Ray Evernham and Cook have formed a partnership which will see the MasterSbilt Race Car of Cook sporting the name, colors, style and powerplant of Dodge for the 2004 Stacker 2 Xtreme DirtCar Series campaign.

The Stacker 2 "YJ Stinger Splash Of Energy Tour" Interactive Fan display has been enjoyed by thousands of fans who have attended NASCAR Busch Series and NASCAR Nextel Cup events but it will be a first when the display descends upon East Bay Raceway Park marking the first time ever that fans of dirt track racing will get to enjoy the games and fun of the Stacker 2 "YJ Stinger Splash Of Energy Tour". The 48' interactive display will be on hand through out the week of the "Winternationals".

Three lucky fans will walk away with cold hard cash in hand, courtesy of the newly announced Stacker 2 "Paydirt 24" promotion. With the driving skill of a fans assigned feature event driver and a little luck, that fan could walk away with $1,000 cash in hand. Fans can simply fill out an entry form at the Stacker 2 "YJ Stinger Splash Of Energy Tour" Interactive Fan display the race nights of the Stacker 2 Xtreme DirtCar Series; Tuesday, Thursday and Saturday - Feb. 3, 5 & 7. Each night prior to the feature event 24 fan names from all entry forms will be randomly drawn. Those lucky 24 fans will be assigned one of the 24 feature event drivers. If one fans assigned driver wins the feature event then that one fan assigned to the feature winning driver will pocket $1,000, courtesy of Stacker 2. The other 23 fans will receive a Stacker 2 energy gift pack consisting of a four-pack of YJ Stinger Energy Drink, a Stacker 2 T-shirt and cap.

Fans will also have the opportunity to win "the ride of a lifetime" with an airborne excursion aboard the Goodyear Tire Company blimp. Any fan who has purchased an advanced ticket through January 15, 2004 for the "Winternationals" will be eligible for the Goodyear Tire Company "Ride The Blimp" promotion. One name from all advanced ticket purchasers will be drawn at random with that person receiving the prize, courtesy of the Goodyear Tire Company. Long known for it's storied coverage of major sporting events, the Goodyear blimp will be flying above East Bay Raceway Park during the "Winternationals".

Another promotion added for the fans by East Bay Raceway Park president Al Varnadore is the chance to take a ride in a full blown DirtCar around the semi-banked 1/3rd mile East Bay Raceway Park track. The Ground Hog Chassis Co.'s two-seater DirtCar will be at East Bay Raceway Park not only for Media Day (Monday, Feb. 2 at 2:00pm) but will be there throughout the "Winternationals" week. Fans will have a chance to purchase a ride with some rides complimentary.

The annual East Bay Raceway Park "Appreciation B-B-Q" presented by Sunoco Race Fuels will again take place Friday afternoon (Feb. 6) in the pit area.

Single night advanced reserved seat ticket prices range, depending on seat selection, from $25.00 to $35.00 for the February 2 - 5 races and range in price from $25.00 to $40.00 for the February 6 and 7 races. Childrens tickets, general admission only, are 1/2 price. All credit card orders will be assessed a $5.00 handling charge. Pit admission tickets will be sold the day of the event only. Reserved camping at the track is also available for a nominal fee.

East Bay Raceway Park has also arranged for discounted lodging at the Holiday Inn City Centre in Tampa (800) 513-8940, Ramada Inn on Tampa Bay in Apollo Beach (800) 67-BEACH and Sleep Inn and Suites in Ellenton (941) 721-4933. For the "racers rate discount" mention East Bay Raceway Park.

To order advanced reserved single night tickets, reserved camping or for further information phone East Bay Raceway Park Monday through Friday from 9:00am to 5:00pm at 813-677-7223, toll free at 877-457-5611 or visit the EBRP website located at www.eastbayracewaypark.com.

STACKER 2 XTREME DIRCTAR SERIES AND NORTHERN XTREME DIRTCAR SERIES
EAST BAY RACEWAY PARK - TAMPA (GIBSONTON),FL
FEB. 1, 2004 TO FEB. 7, 2004
"28TH ANNUAL WINTERNATIONALS" SCHEDULE OF EVENTS

Sun. 2/1:

Pit Gates Open 4:30pm.
Practice 6:00pm - 10:00pm

Mon. 2/2 through Sat. 2/7:

Tech. Inspection begins 11:00am
Registration 12:00 Noon to 2:30pm
Pits Cleared 1:30pm
Pits Re-Opened 2:00pm
Drivers Meeting 2:45pm
Hot Laps 3:00pm
Time Trials Immediately Follow
Once T.T. are done track prep. will take place if needed.
Heats 7:00pm
(3) or (2) "B" Mains follow
Heat Race Winners Dash follows
"Donn Goodson Memorial Strawberry Dash" follows
Feature Event follows

Mon. 2/2: 40 Lap Feature - $5,000 To Win - $24,200 Purse (NXDCS)
Tues. 2/3: 40 Lap Feature - $5,000 To Win - $24,200 Purse (S2XDCS)
Wed. 2/4: 50 Lap Feature - $7,000 To Win - $29,000 Purse (NXDCS)
Thurs. 2/5: 50 Lap Feature - $7,000 To Win - $31,500 Purse (S2XDCS)
Fri. 2/6: 60 Lap Feature - $12,000 To Win - $43,000 Purse (NXDCS)
Sat. 2/7: 75 Lap Feature - $15,000 To Win - $53,100 Purse (S2XDCS)

January 27, 2004
Bret Emrick

Shelby,NC 1-27-04

A new era in DirtCar (dirt Late Model) racing history will unfold Tuesday, Feb. 3 at East Bay Raceway Park in Tampa (Gibsonton),FL as the Stacker 2 Xtreme DirtCar Series opens up their 2004 racing season sanctioning three nights of the Feb. 2 - 7 "28th Annual Winternationals" at the semi-banked 1/3rd mile speedway. The week-long "meat grinder" of DirtCar racing, sanctioned by the Stacker 2 Xtreme DirtCar Series and Northern Xtreme DirtCar Series, offers a complete racing program of time trials, qualifying heats, "B" Mains, dashes and feature races each night of the "Winternationals".

The Stacker 2 Xtreme DirtCar Series takes center stage Tuesday, Feb. 3 with a 40 lap - $5,000 to win main event. Another 50 lap main event paying $7,000 to win is on tap for Thursday, Feb. 5. The final night of the "28th Annual Winternationals", Saturday, Feb. 7, will see the Stacker 2 Xtreme DirtCar Series battle it out before The Speed Channel cameras in a 75 lap feature event paying $15,000 to win. Total purse money posted by 2 VHL Promotions, the management team at EBRP, reaches nearly $110,000 for the three-day S2XDCS affair.

"What a talented mix of drivers the fans will get to cheer for during the upcoming "Winternationals" and the entrire season", stated Xtreme DirtCars,Inc. owner/president Doug Bland. "Brian Birkhofer, Jimmy Mars, Don O'Neal, Matt Miller, Earl Pearson Jr., Ray Cook, Donnie Moran and Steve Shaver have all indicated that they will be following us. I'm excited about it because the Brian Birkhofer's and those guys are the future of our sport. These guys are the ones that are going to carry the torch on for the race fans down the road and these guys will be here for the long haul. And, we need future superstars for our sport."

A strong class of "rookie" drivers have decided to join the "veterans" for the 2004 Stacker 2 Xtreme DirtCar Series which pleases Bland immensely. "By far this is the strongest rookie class that has ever been in DirtCar racing", said Bland. "Billy Drake, Darren Miller, Shane Clanton, Jeep Van Wormer, Duke Whiseant, Dennis Franklin and Jeff Choquette; those guys, a couple of them, could win a championship for that matter."

One of those "rookie" drivers shooting for the 2004 Lucas Oil "Rookie of the Year" title and extremely excited about the upcoming season is Drake. The Bloomington,IL native, who will come into the war with MasterSbilt Race Car powered by a Mulvain Racing Engine, can't wait to get things underway.

"I'm excited about following the Stacker 2 Xtreme DirtCar Series this year", said Drake from his shop. "I really believe Doug has good ideas and vision of where he wants to take this sport. I really had to weigh the options we had for this year but I like what I see down the road with the Xtreme Series. My decision to go after the 'Rookie' title and chase the series was based solely on what was good for me and my team. Our main goal is win the 'Rookie' title. That's going to be awfully tough with the other teams that are shooting for the 'Rookie' title. But, we will just do the best we can do."

The lightning-quick East Bay Raceway Park has hosted fourteen previous sanctioned events by the Xtreme DirtCar Series with eight different drivers gracing victory lane. Rick Eckert leads the winners list with three previous scores while Steve Shaver, Don O'Neal, Jimmy Mars and Billy Moyer all have two wins apiece. Single tallies have fallen to Skip Arp, Davey Johnson and Dan Schlieper.

An "open practice session" has been scheduled for Sunday, February 1 to allow race teams to test the series mandated Goodyear tires. Several personnel and service technicians from the Goodyear Tire Company will be on hand for the practice session and throughout the week of the "28th Annual Winternationals". Pit gates for the practice session will open at 4:30pm with practice slated from 6:00pm to 10:00pm.

The schedule of events for all six days of the "Winternationals" will see Tech. inspection beginning at 11:00am and registration from 12:00 Noon to 2:00pm each day. The pit area will be cleared at 1:30pm each day with the pit gates re-opening at 2:00pm. Drivers meeting is set for 2:45pm with hot laps at 3:00pm followed immediately by time trials. Once time trials have been completed track preperation will take place, if needed. The racing program will begin with the heat races at 7:00pm followed by the "B" Mains, the heat race winners dash, the "Donn Goodson Memorial Strawberry Dashes" and then the feature event. The schedule may be adjusted throughout the week.

Extra bonus monies have also been posted for the upcoming series opener's for the Stacker 2 Xtreme DirtCar Series and Northern Xtreme DirtCar Series at East Bay Raceway Park in Tampa (Gibsonton),FL. Sports Plus Video of Williamsport,MD will award $100 cash each night to the driver with the fastest time trial not to qualify for the main event and will award a $500 cash bonus to the driver who holds a new track record at the end of the six-day "Winternationals".

Several promotional venues for the legion of fans who descend upon East Bay Raceway Park will be happening through out the week:

Former NASCAR champion and multi-time fan voted "Most Popular NASCAR Driver" Bill Elliott, who will participate in a limited number of NASCAR Nextel Cup events in 2004, and Mark Martin, driver of the Viagara sponsered NASCAR Nextel Cup car, will sign autographs for the fans Tuesday, Feb. 3 at the Stacker 2 "YJ Stinger Splash Of Energy Tour" interactive fan display. Elliott will sign autographs starting at 3:00pm while Martin will greet the fans from 6:00pm to 7:45pm. Elliott will also be participating in several things while at East Bay Raceway Park including being the pilot for the "two-seater" DirtCar that will give media members, who attend Tuesday, an "up close and personal view" of the semi-banked 1/3rd mile speedway. Elliott will also be watching "The Tar Heel Tiger", Ray Cook, very closely. Elliott along with multi-time NASACAR champion crew chief Ray Evernham and Cook have formed a partnership which will see the MasterSbilt Race Car of Cook sporting the name, colors, style and powerplant of Dodge for the 2004 Stacker 2 Xtreme DirtCar Series campaign.

The Stacker 2 "YJ Stinger Splash Of Energy Tour" Interactive Fan display has been enjoyed by thousands of fans who have attended NASCAR Busch Series and NASCAR Nextel Cup events but it will be a first when the display descends upon East Bay Raceway Park marking the first time ever that fans of dirt track racing will get to enjoy the games and fun of the Stacker 2 "YJ Stinger Splash Of Energy Tour". The 48' interactive display will be on hand through out the week of the "Winternationals".

Three lucky fans will walk away with cold hard cash in hand, courtesy of the newly announced Stacker 2 "Paydirt 24" promotion. With the driving skill of a fans assigned feature event driver and a little luck, that fan could walk away with $1,000 cash in hand. Fans can simply fill out an entry form at the Stacker 2 "YJ Stinger Splash Of Energy Tour" Interactive Fan display the race nights of the Stacker 2 Xtreme DirtCar Series; Tuesday, Thursday and Saturday - Feb. 3, 5 & 7. Each night prior to the feature event 24 fan names from all entry forms will be randomly drawn. Those lucky 24 fans will be assigned one of the 24 feature event drivers. If one fans assigned driver wins the feature event then that one fan assigned to the feature winning driver will pocket $1,000, courtesy of Stacker 2. The other 23 fans will receive a Stacker 2 energy gift pack consisting of a four-pack of YJ Stinger Energy Drink, a Stacker 2 T-shirt and cap.

Fans will also have the opportunity to win "the ride of a lifetime" with an airborne excursion aboard the Goodyear Tire Company blimp. Any fan who has purchased an advanced ticket through January 15, 2004 for the "Winternationals" will be eligible for the Goodyear Tire Company "Ride The Blimp" promotion. One name from all advanced ticket purchasers will be drawn at random with that person receiving the prize, courtesy of the Goodyear Tire Company. Long known for it's storied coverage of major sporting events, the Goodyear blimp will be flying above East Bay Raceway Park during the "Winternationals".

Another promotion added for the fans by East Bay Raceway Park president Al Varnadore is the chance to take a ride in a full blown DirtCar around the semi-banked 1/3rd mile East Bay Raceway Park track. The Ground Hog Chassis Co.'s two-seater DirtCar will be at East Bay Raceway Park not only for Media Day (Monday, Feb. 2 at 2:00pm) but will be there throughout the "Winternationals" week. Fans will have a chance to purchase a ride with some rides complimentary.

The annual East Bay Raceway Park "Appreciation B-B-Q" presented by Sunoco Race Fuels will again take place Friday afternoon (Feb. 6) in the pit area.

Single night advanced reserved seat ticket prices range, depending on seat selection, from $25.00 to $35.00 for the February 2 - 5 races and range in price from $25.00 to $40.00 for the February 6 and 7 races. Childrens tickets, general admission only, are 1/2 price. All credit card orders will be assessed a $5.00 handling charge. Pit admission tickets will be sold the day of the event only. Reserved camping at the track is also available for a nominal fee.

East Bay Raceway Park has also arranged for discounted lodging at the Holiday Inn City Centre in Tampa (800) 513-8940, Ramada Inn on Tampa Bay in Apollo Beach (800) 67-BEACH and Sleep Inn and Suites in Ellenton (941) 721-4933. For the "racers rate discount" mention East Bay Raceway Park.

To order advanced reserved single night tickets, reserved camping or for further information phone East Bay Raceway Park Monday through Friday from 9:00am to 5:00pm at 813-677-7223, toll free at 877-457-5611 or visit the EBRP website located at www.eastbayracewaypark.com.

STACKER 2 XTREME DIRCTAR SERIES AND NORTHERN XTREME DIRTCAR SERIES
EAST BAY RACEWAY PARK - TAMPA (GIBSONTON),FL
FEB. 1, 2004 TO FEB. 7, 2004

"28TH ANNUAL WINTERNATIONALS" SCHEDULE OF EVENTS

Sun. 2/1:

Pit Gates Open 4:30pm.
Practice 6:00pm - 10:00pm

Mon. 2/2 through Sat. 2/7:

Tech. Inspection begins 11:00am
Registration 12:00 Noon to 2:30pm
Pits Cleared 1:30pm
Pits Re-Opened 2:00pm
Drivers Meeting 2:45pm
Hot Laps 3:00pm
Time Trials Immediately Follow
Once T.T. are done track prep. will take place if needed.
Heats 7:00pm
(3) or (2) "B" Mains follow
Heat Race Winners Dash follows
"Donn Goodson Memorial Strawberry Dash" follows
Feature Event follows

Mon. 2/2: 40 Lap Feature - $5,000 To Win - $24,200 Purse (NXDCS)
Tues. 2/3: 40 Lap Feature - $5,000 To Win - $24,200 Purse (S2XDCS)
Wed. 2/4: 50 Lap Feature - $7,000 To Win - $29,000 Purse (NXDCS)
Thurs. 2/5: 50 Lap Feature - $7,000 To Win - $31,500 Purse (S2XDCS)
Fri. 2/6: 60 Lap Feature - $12,000 To Win - $43,000 Purse (NXDCS)
Sat. 2/7: 75 Lap Feature - $15,000 To Win - $53,100 Purse (S2XDCS)

January 27, 2004
Bret Emrick

Shelby,NC 1-27-04
The Northern Xtreme DirtCar Series (formerly the Renegade DirtCar Racing Series) will kick off their 2004 racing season Monday (Feb. 2) sanctioning the opening night of the "28th Annual Winternationals" at East Bay Raceway Park in Tampa (Gibsonton),FL. The NXDCS will also sanction the Wednesday and Friday portions of the six-race "Winternationals" while the Stacker 2 Xtreme DirtCar Series will headline the racing action at East Bay Raceway Park Tuesday, Thursday and Saturday.

The "28th Annual Winternationals" begin Monday, Feb. 2 with a NXDCS sanctioned 40 lap feature event paying $5,000 to the winner. Wednesday, Feb. 4 features a 50 lap main event paying $7,000 to win. The finale for the NXDCS happens Friday, Feb. 6 with $12,000 going to the winner of the 60 lap feature event. Nearly $100,000 in purse money alone has been posted by 2 VHL Promotions, the management team of the semi-banked 1/3rd mile speedway, for the NXDCS events.

The 2004 NXDCS points championship, worth $30,000 to the champion, will see veteran drivers such as Davey Johnson, Donnie Moran, John Mason, 2003 series "Rookie of the Year" Dave Troutman and Bill Cunningham making a run at the championship while young hotshoes Steve Casebolt, Sean Cosgrove, Eric Myers and D.J. Troutman will battle the veterans.

D.J. Troutman of Hyndman,PA, who served as crew chief for his father Dave's "rookie" title in 2003, will jump behind the wheel in 2004 in his quest for the NXDCS "Rookie of the Year" crown.

"We are really excited about this upcoming year", stated the 21 year-old. "Having my car in the Xtreme DirtCars,Inc. booth at the the 'Motorsports ' 04 Racing Expo' presented by Sunoco a couple of weeks back really paid off. Thanks to Doug Bland and Bret Emrick my father and I were fortunate enough to meet the main prinicipals of Stacker 2. And, those talks have paid off. We will debut our Rocket Chassis/ Russell Baker Racing Engines Pontiac Grand Prix at East Bay Raceway Park sporting a yellow paint scheme, the No. 2 and sponsorship from YJ Stinger Energy Drinks. The sponsorship isn't just for East Bay but for all season. I am pumped!".

Troutman also related, "None of this would've come about if my father and I didn't believe in this program. You know a lot of people have been saying we need corporate involvement. This Xtreme DirtCars program is providing that. Not just for me but for other drivers as well. Now, I have to do my job for YJ Stinger Energy Drinks. You'll only get out of it what you put into it. And, I plan to do the best job for them I can."

In twenty-seven previous NXDCS races at the always competitive EBRP, sixteen different drivers have found winners circle. Don O'Neal heads up the winners list with six while Steve Francis has chalked up four wins. Drivers with two wins each include Billy Moyer, Davey Johnson and local hotshoe Keith Nosbsich. Nailing single triumphs have been Rick Aukland, Steve Shaver, Booper Bare, Mike Balzano, Gary Stuhler, Jimmy Mars, Wendell Wallace, Dan Schlieper, Ray Cook, Jackie Boggs and Chub Frank.

An "open practice session" has been scheduled for Sunday, February 1 to allow race teams to test the series mandated Goodyear tires. Several personnel and service technicians from the Goodyear Tire Company will be on hand for the practice session and throughout the week of the "28th Annual Winternationals". Pit gates for the practice session will open at 4:30pm with practice slated from 6:00pm to 10:00pm.

The schedule of events for all six days of the "Winternationals" will see Tech. inspection beginning at 11:00am and registration from 12:00 Noon to 2:00pm each day. The pit area will be cleared at 1:30pm each day with the pit gates re-opening at 2:00pm. Drivers meeting is set for 2:45pm with hot laps at 3:00pm followed immediately by time tri