6/15/2007
Brooks Robinson, out of Carbondale, IL, went the distance Friday night to win the first Holzhauer Jr. Dragster Summer Shootout. He narrowly defeated Joseph Bommarito in the final by .009 seconds. Robinson had the better reaction time in every round, which gave him the edge at the top end. Bommarito recorded a rare perfect light that eventually led to a hole shot victory over Shotty Kesel. Since Robinson is not entered into the points, Bommarito’s runner-up finish puts him on top of the Holzhauer Jr. Dragster Summer Shootout Point Standings. Kegan Hagedorn made a semi-final appearance and that puts him in first place of Gateway’s Jr. Dragster 13+ Points.
Jessica Shaeffer’s road to the winner’s circle was all but easy. She got fortunate in round one as her opponent left first and turned on the red light, as Shaeffer left early too but still got the win. In round two, she had to overcome a .182 starting line disadvantage over Kelsey Cutler in order to survive to round three. Schaeffer then settled down and got the bye into the final round where she beat Brandon Rudd on a huge hole shot. Rudd’s car ran within hundredths all night but Schaeffer’s light was too good for Rudd to overcome. Schaeffer moves to first place in the Holzhauer Jr. Dragster Summer Shootout while she moves to 4th in Gateway’s Jr. Dragster 10-12 Point Standings.
Tommy Heaney of Imperial, MO, made it all four rounds Friday night to take home the trophy and the $150 prize. In round one, he had to overcome a .221 starting line disadvantage to Zac Barnett, but Barnett ran too fast for his dial-in as Heaney moved on running a 13.083 on a 13.02 dial. He got the bye in round two, his opponent red lighted in round three, and in the final, he treed Cody Jones by .050 which made Jones break out at the top end giving Heaney the win. The win puts Heaney in first place in the Holzhauer Jr. Dragster 8-9 Shootout Standings and in Gateway’s 8-9 Jr. Dragster Points Standings.
It was a good night for the Tosto Family. All three Tosto cars entered won first round, and took up three of the four semi-final spots. In semi-final #1, Todd Tosto defeated Nick Hastwig, which guaranteed an all-Tosto final. In semi-final #2, the father (Tony) and son (Timmy) match-up as the Tony gave his son an easy road to the final by turning on the red light by -.141. Then we were down to the two sons as Timmy had the better light, but Todd ran closer to his dial-in in this double breakout final. Todd has now won the last two events here at Gateway.
Kevin Goss is a force to be reckoned with as he has now won back to back events. In the final, Chris Powell had the better light by .008, but Goss ran closer to his dial-in to take the win. These two racers were the best when it game to reaction times all night as they were #1 and #2 in each round. Goss ran a 12.231 on a 12.18 dial while Powell could only run a 14.047 on a 13.95 dial. (photos available)
- story by Brody Bernshausen
Brooks Robinson, out of Carbondale, IL, went the distance Friday night to win the first Holzhauer Jr. Dragster Summer Shootout. He narrowly defeated Joseph Bommarito in the final by .009 seconds. Robinson had the better reaction time in every round, which gave him the edge at the top end. Bommarito recorded a rare perfect light that eventually led to a hole shot victory over Shotty Kesel. Since Robinson is not entered into the points, Bommarito’s runner-up finish puts him on top of the Holzhauer Jr. Dragster Summer Shootout Point Standings. Kegan Hagedorn made a semi-final appearance and that puts him in first place of Gateway’s Jr. Dragster 13+ Points.
Jessica Shaeffer’s road to the winner’s circle was all but easy. She got fortunate in round one as her opponent left first and turned on the red light, as Shaeffer left early too but still got the win. In round two, she had to overcome a .182 starting line disadvantage over Kelsey Cutler in order to survive to round three. Schaeffer then settled down and got the bye into the final round where she beat Brandon Rudd on a huge hole shot. Rudd’s car ran within hundredths all night but Schaeffer’s light was too good for Rudd to overcome. Schaeffer moves to first place in the Holzhauer Jr. Dragster Summer Shootout while she moves to 4th in Gateway’s Jr. Dragster 10-12 Point Standings.
Tommy Heaney of Imperial, MO, made it all four rounds Friday night to take home the trophy and the $150 prize. In round one, he had to overcome a .221 starting line disadvantage to Zac Barnett, but Barnett ran too fast for his dial-in as Heaney moved on running a 13.083 on a 13.02 dial. He got the bye in round two, his opponent red lighted in round three, and in the final, he treed Cody Jones by .050 which made Jones break out at the top end giving Heaney the win. The win puts Heaney in first place in the Holzhauer Jr. Dragster 8-9 Shootout Standings and in Gateway’s 8-9 Jr. Dragster Points Standings.
It was a good night for the Tosto Family. All three Tosto cars entered won first round, and took up three of the four semi-final spots. In semi-final #1, Todd Tosto defeated Nick Hastwig, which guaranteed an all-Tosto final. In semi-final #2, the father (Tony) and son (Timmy) match-up as the Tony gave his son an easy road to the final by turning on the red light by -.141. Then we were down to the two sons as Timmy had the better light, but Todd ran closer to his dial-in in this double breakout final. Todd has now won the last two events here at Gateway.
Kevin Goss is a force to be reckoned with as he has now won back to back events. In the final, Chris Powell had the better light by .008, but Goss ran closer to his dial-in to take the win. These two racers were the best when it game to reaction times all night as they were #1 and #2 in each round. Goss ran a 12.231 on a 12.18 dial while Powell could only run a 14.047 on a 13.95 dial. (photos available)
- story by Brody Bernshausen
