13 replies to this topic

[Ralph Thorne]

FlexiPalooza will take place on June 1 and 2 at Downriver Speedway in Lincoln Park, MI.

LMP and GTP flexi cars using FNRS rules with hand-out motors, bodies, and tires. All races will be run on the Gerding King track.
 
Downriver Speedway & Hobby Shop
3918 Dix Rd
Lincoln Park, MI 48146
(313) 544-3374
 
For more Info and the Online Entry Form check out the Flexi Palooza 2018 FB Page https://www.facebook...66000330545120/
 
Space is limited to 64 entrants per class. The following list of entrants have pre-registared and paid.
 
1.Randy Bussinger x x
2. Zachary Holley x x
3. Frank Ulbrik x x
4. Dan van Horn x x
5. Bud Denning x x
6. David C. DeCoster x x
7. Perry Walters x x
8. Ronald Vincek x x
9. Floyd Wagner x x
10 Eric Shirey x x
11 Bob Dempsey x x
12 Scott Schultz x x
13 John Druskinis x x
14 Rich Attee x x
15 Terry Watson x x
16 Ron Hershman x x
17 Lonnie Baatz x x
18 Dustin Larowe x x
19 Jim Harter x x
20 Bob Foster x x
21 Winfried Jakob x x
22 Jim Pace Jr. x x
23 Rodger Niznik x x
24 Fred Zufelt x x
25 James Sproviero x x
26 Dave Mountz x x
27 Patrick Lacey x x
28 Bob Appelle x x
29 Mark Anderson x x
30 Jeremy Wyant x x
31 Roger Schmitt x x
32 John Miller x x
33 Dave Simerka x x
34 Nelson Swanberg x x
35 Gary Beale x x
36 Greg Streeter x x
37 Greg VanPeenen x
38 Craig Hensman x x
39 Bob Hill x x
40 Alan Gallacher x x
41 Mike Stamey x x
42 Mark Wurzinger x
43 Pete Reams x x
44 Anthony Brown x x
45 Ralph Thorne x x
46 Brandon Barricello x x
47 Ross Scharf x x
48 Willy Custer x x
50 James Merriman x x
51 Scott Morgan x x
52 Bobby Beauchmin x x
53 Troy Johnson x x
54 Kaitlyn Johnson x x
55 Walker McAnulty x x

[A. J. Hoyt]

Having raced at Downriver twice a week for a year (a year ago), I am envious of those attending and I am hoping someone will provide some updates as the day goes on. Is so, someone please state where that link will be.

 

The big day will be tomorrow. This is a large crowd to be stuffed into that facility. And there may be long waits for your race to come up. Accordingly: 

 

I always had to find food locally for race day and I have some suggestions. I like to avoid "Generica" types of restaurants, preferring to support local owner-operators. My caveat is that a year has gone by and some things may have changed.

 

Every local knows about Doughboys just south and across the street on Dix Hwy (you can see the sign from the front of Downriver Speedway). I'm told they make great pizza but don't overlook their hot sub sandwiches with their awesome steak fries (recommend the That Doughboy and the Philly). I'm sure there will be lots of flyers there. The owner is a great guy and tends to support the bigger races there with free delivery!

 

Coney Islands are all the rage in and around Detroit. There was a great one on the west side of Dix Hwy south of the raceway called Ramsey's Coney Island. A year ago, they were called the Olympic Flame Coney Island and they were great for a sit-down (or take-out) breakfast/lunch/dinner at reasonable prices.

 

Last recommendation - if you really like Thai food, one of the best places I have ever found anywhere is called Thai Place, a bit of a drive south taking Dix Hwy past the slight right hand bend where it becomes Dix Toledo Hwy. When you see the Super Wal*Mart on the RH side, turn left to the small mall before you get to the light at Eureka. It is a bit hard to find in the NE corner of the intersection at Eureka but really worth the effort. You can order their dinner portion at lunch and you will have enough left over to nosh on the rest of the day. Very, very good food and large portions at a reasonable price.

 

Sorry for posting this so late but I hope someone benefits from it.

 

Good racing, all!

[Bob Appelle]

I just got home.

Everyone got their motors and tires and sorted things out until 6:00. Qualifying started around 7:45 and finished about 9:30. Local hot shoe Frank Ulbrik was TQ with Willy and Hershman close behind. I'll get a screen shot of the results tomorrow.  

Bob

[Twisted Metal]

Good luck to all the racers this weekend!!

Are there any results from qualifying last night?

[Bob Appelle]

This is a screen shot of the LMP A Main.

[TallyBernie]

When will all race results be posted?

[Cheater]

Who knows?

[Ralph Thorne]

Sometime today as soon as everyone gets recovered. 

[Brinkley47]

One of the largest slot car events in America this year. Be patient. The results will be worth it

When is the next one Ralph?

[mark1]

As you can imagine, a lot of work goes into an event of this size. I would like to say thanks very much to everyone for your hard work!

[Ralph Thorne]

2018 Flexi Palooza, the story...

 

Over 50 racers from 10 different states and Canada traveled to Lincoln Park, Mi for the 2018 Flexi Palooza race at Down River Speedway on June 1-3, 2018. Lots of racers were in the house starting on Thursday getting dialed in for the weekend of racing.

 

Friday June 1 was the day of 6 hours of practice and LMP qualifying by laps and sections in the evening. Everyone was busy getting in as many laps as they could sorting out their tires, motors, gearing and chassis set-ups.

LMP qualifying by laps and sections went pretty well with the exception of taking some additional time at the end to sort out all the ties with many drivers running the same number of laps and finishing in the same sections.

At the end it was Frank Ulbrik 1st running 17 laps and 30 sections followed by Willy Custer 17 laps and 20 sections, Ron Hershman 17 laps and 16 sections for the Top 3 in qualifying.

After LMP qualifying and lane choices was done, there was one more hour of GTP practice and all racers had to turn in their motors and tire for overnight impound and all LMP cars were impounded over night as well.

Sat morning the track opened at 8:30 AM and LMP racing started roughly at 9 AM

 

LMP F Main..... Ron Vincek, Perry Walters, late arrival John Miller and Pete Reams quickly distanced themselves from the rest of the field and battled for the win. Perry Walters was the winner by one lap over Ron Vincek who was two laps ahead of Pete Reams and John Miller both on the same lap with Pete sections ahead of John. 5th was Nelson Swanberg followed by Alan Gallecher, Pat Lacey, Jacob Winfried and DNS Bob Dempsey. Fastest Race Lap John Miller 3.793.

 

LMP E Main.... Jim Harter and Jeremy Wyant were out front early until problems set both back and Bob Foster roared to the front and won ahead of Jim Pace Jr, Jeremy Wyant, Jim Harter, Mark Anderson, Randy Bussinger, Fred Zufelt, John Druskinis and Gary Beale. Fastest Race Lap Jim Harter 3.695.

 

LMP D Main..... Zach Holley blew everyone away in this race winning by 17 laps over Roger Schmitt, Bud Denning, Scott Schultz, Kaitlyn Johnson, Bob Hill, Bob Appelle, Craig Hensmen and Anthony Brown. Fastest Race Lap Bud Denning 3.684.

 

LMP C Main.... Dave Simerka and James Merriman ran door handle to door handle in this one swapping the lead back and forth the entire distance with James beating out Dave by sections at the end and was followed by Lonnie Baatz, Scott Morgan, Spove, Floyd Wagner, Brandon Baricello and Dan Van Horn. Fastest Race Lap Dave Simerka 3.671.

 

LMP B Main.... Walker McAnulty put on a show and won by 6 laps over Alex Juncos, Dustin LaRowe, Dave Decoster, Rich Attee, Terry Watson, Greg Streeter and Mike Stamey. Fastest Race Lap Alex Juncos 3.686.

 

LMP A Main..... A real tight race in the early going until Frank Ulbrik, Ron Hershman, Ralph Thorne, Willy Custer and Eric Shirey pulled away from the rest of the field. Frank was out in heat 5 with car damage and Willy pulled away as the rest of the field faded a bit. At the end it was Willy Custer winning followed by Ron Hershman, Eric Shirey, Ralph Thorne, Shane Parent, Troy Johnson, Ross Scharf and Frank Ulbrik. Fastest Race Lap Frank Ulbrik 3.536.

 

LMP OVERALL

 

WILLY CUSTER 382
RON HERSHMAN 374
ERIC SHIREY 372
RALPH THORNE 367
SHANE PARENT 366
WALKER MCANULTY 363
JAMES MERRIMAN 362.75
DAVE SIMERKA 362.06

ZACH HOLLEY 360.26
TROY JOHNSON 360.07
ALEX JUNCOS 357.15
LONNIE BAATZ 354
SCOTT MORGAN 353.13
DUSTIN LAROWE 353.04
ROSS SCHARF 353.03
BOB FOSTER 352
DAVID DECOSTER 351
RICH ATTEE 350
SPOVE 347.19
TERRY WATSON 347.16
JIM PACE JR 347.04
JEREMY WYANT 345
PERRY WALTERS 344
RON VINCEK 343.17
ROGER SCHMITT 343.16
FLOYD WAGNER 343.06
BUD DENNING 342
PETE REAMS 340.18
JOHN MILLER 340.05
BRANDON BARICELLO 338
JIM HARTER 325
MARK ANDERSON 321.07
SCOTT SCHULTZ 321.02
NELSON SWANBERG 321.31
RANDY BUSSINGER 320.08
FRED ZUFELT 319
KAITLYN JOHNSON 318
ALLAN GALLACHER 317
BOB HILL 316
PAT LACEY 314
BOB APPELLE 312
JAKOB WINFRIED 297
CRAIG HENSMEN 286
GREG STREETER 283
MIKE STAMEY 279
JOHN DRUSKINIS 265
GARY BEALE 243
ANTHONY BROWN 236
FRANK ULBRIK 193
DAVE VAN HORN 175
BOB DEMPSEY DNS

 

 

After the conclusion of LMP there was a short time of final GTP practice and tech followed by qualifying. Qualifying for GTP was done fastest lap on red lane.

TQ was Ross Scharf 3.59, Frank Ulbrik 3.60 and Spove 3.61.

 

GTP F Main...... Bob Dempsey was feeling better and joined the field and was the winner by 6 laps over Nelson Swanberg followed by Fred Zufelt, Pat Lacey, Mark Anderson, Gary Beale, Jakob Winfried, Randy Bussinger and Alan Gallacher. Fastest Race Lap Nelson Swanberg 3.682.

 

GTP E Main..... Roger Schmitt was the winner by 7 lap over 2nd place Greg Streeter from California followed by Anthony Brown, Bob Appelle, Perry Walters, Kaitlyn Johnson, John Druskinis, Dave Mountz and Bob Hill. Fastest Race Lap Roger Schmitt 3.602

 

GTP D Main.... This could have been the race of the day with five drivers battling the entire distance for the win. At the end the top 5 drivers were within 4 laps and winner Bob Foster beat out Jeremy Wyant by sections with Lonnie Baatz one lap behind followed by Jim Harter, Troy Johnson, Craig Hensman, Scott Schultz, Mike Stamey and Dan Van Horn. Fastest Race Lap Jim Harter 3.657.

 

GTP C Main.... Rich Attee won over Dustin LaRowe by 2 laps followed by Dave Simerka, Zach Holley, Floyd Wagner, Pete Reams, Dave Decoster, John Miller and Alex Juncos. Fastest Race Lap Dave Decoster and Floyd Wagner 3.713.

 

GTP B Main..... Another good race early on with Walker McAnulty pulling away at the end to win by two laps over Bud Denning. Terry Watson 3rd followed by Ralph Thorne, Scott Morgan, Brandon Barricello, Jim Pace Jr, Elmo and Mark Wurzinger. Fastest Race Lap Ralph Thorne 3.633.

 

GTP A Main..... The top 4 drivers in this one, Willy Custer, Frank Ulbrik, Ron Hershman and Ross Scharf ran the early and middle parts of the race all pretty much on the same lap from the second heat until the 6th heat. Ross pulled away and was leading by 3 with 2 heats to go while Frank, Willy and Ron battled for the final podium spot. Frank had gear issues in the last heat and at the end it was Ross Scharf, Willy Custer, Ron Hershman, Frank Ulbrik, Eric Shirey, James Merriman, Spove and Shane Parent. Fastest Race Lap Frank Ulbrik 3.544.

 

GTP OVERALL

 

ROSS SCHARF 385
WILLY CUSTER 382
RON HERSHMAN 381
FRANK ULBRIK 376
WALKER MCANULTY 373.08
RICH ATTEE 371
ERIC SHIREY 370
BUD DENNING 369.21

DUSTIN LAROWE 369.20
JAMES MERRIMAN 369.18
TERRY WATSON 368.02
ROGER SCHMITT 367.30
RALPH THORNE 366.30
DAAVE SIMERKA 366.20
SCOTT MORGAN 363.60
BOB FOSTER 362.29
JEREMY WYANT 363
SPOVE 361.19
LONNIE BAATZ 361.12
GREG STREETER 360
JIM HARTER 359
TROY JOHNSON 358
FLOYD WAGNER 357.20
BRANDON BARICELLO 357.04
JIM PACE JR 355
CRAIG HENSMEN 352
PETE REAMS 351
SHANE PARENT 350
ANTHONY BROWN 348
ELMO 345
SCOTT SCHULTZ 342.18
BOB DEMPSEY 342.16
DAVID DECOSTER 341
BOB APPELLE 340
MIKE STAMEY 339
NELSON SWANBERG 336
DAVE VAN HORN 335
JOHN MILLER 327
PERRY WALTERS 326.28
FRED ZUFELT 326.04
PAT LACEY 325
MIKE ANDERSON 324
KAITLYN JOHNSON 323
GARY BEALE 316
JAKOB WINFRIED 302
MARK WURZINGER 299
JOHN DRUSKINIS 290
DAVE MOUNTZ 261
BOB HILL 249
RANDY BUSSINGER 240
ALLAN GALLACHER 138
ALEX JUNCOS DQ

 

 

Congrats to Willy Custer Master Champion

 

On Sunday was the "Dash for Cash" race on the Down River oval track featuring 8 Mossetti RTR cars with 4" Stock car bodies on them. After lots of lead changes, bumping and passing the winner of the $250.00 cash was Walker McAnulty wining by one lap over Ron Hershman followed by Eric Shirey, Ralph Thorne, Terry Watson, James Merriman, Rich Attee, Ross Scharf.

 

Thanks to JB owner of Down River Speedway for hosting the event. BIG Thanks to Bob "Sawdust" Manzitti for race directing, Bob Foster, Rich Attee, Johnny D and everyone else at Down River who pitched in helping making things run smoothly throughout the weekend.

 

Thanks to ALL of the racers who participated and we couldn't have had such a great event without all of you.

 

Thanks to the sponsors..... Alpha, Pro Slot, Mossetti Racing, Outisight Designs, Ralph Thorne Racing, Mid America Products, Precision Products, APR, Wright Way, Race Pace and Sawdust Man.

 

We look forward to the next Flexi Palooza race and preparations are already underway to make it a bigger and better event.

 

[Ralph Thorne]

LOTS more pictures can be found here....

 

https://www.facebook...366000330545120

[ropon]

Great write-up. Learned a lot about running in such a large race, never experienced it before.

[raisin27]

Sounds like all had a great time, congrats to all the winners and participants.