VERNON, N.Y. — The winningest driver In Utica-Rome Speedway history picked up another one on a cloudy Labor Day Sunday.
This time, though, it was worth $500 a lap or $25,000 since Stewart Friesen led wire to wire in the New Yorker 50 Sunday night.
The event was part of the Short Track Super Elite Series, which features four $25,000-to-win races and two $50,000-to-win races all for a championship worth an additional $25,000 to the champion and another $44,000 spread among the next 11 spots.
It started off looking like Utica-Rome of old for big events such as the New Yorker in the mid 2010s and boy did it prove to be that way. Friesen, who won his heat in convincing fashion, drew the No.1 pill for the feature while track champion and the hottest driver in modified racing, Matt Sheppard, drew No. 10.
When the green flag waved, it was Friesen and Billy Decker quickly got off the line with Friesen having the advantage at the start line and he never looked back. He won by a total of 5.6 seconds while lapping all the way up to 11th place in an event that only had one quick yellow on lap one and went the next 49 laps green.
However, you don’t always want to start on the pole in these big events and Friesen sure knows that for sure but when your biggest rival draws nine positions behind you, you take what you can get.
“Matt (Sheppard) drew the 10 and I knew I had to kind of get out and hide fast.” Friesen said. “Two weeks ago in Delaware, I started on the pole and went backward. We made a lot of adjustments before the feature. We had a good car, wasn’t great and probably could have been better. We have to walk before we can run again, and we were able to keep Matt back there and that was key.”
When one thinks of big events at Utica-Rome, the New Yorker and Victoria events come to mind and they were always slick top to bottom with two grooves to work with.
Those who were good on the throttle were able to master the track and two names who did, Sheppard and Friesen. That’s what the track was on Sunday, Utica-Rome of old.
“Brett (Deyo) does a really good job here.” Friesen said. “From Jamie and Denise Page keeping the grounds looking good to the track guys and even my dad on the grader. It was slick top to bottom tonight with two grooves. This what we come to expect from the New Yorker, slick. I am glad it was the New Yorker 50 not the 100.”
When Labor Day hits all of the tracks in modified country basically end their regular season points and the big money races begin.
The Elite Series event is part of the kickoff weekend of six out of the next seven weekends having 10 races that pay $15,000 or more to win. As Friesen nicknamed it the “Money Time” but it has evolved over the years.
“It’s crazy this time of year,” he said. “We are coming into the money time and this Elite series is really cool. We had bad luck down at Cherokee (S.C.) and lost a motor at Middletown but to get this one is awesome. This is the time of year where you have fresh equipment and motors but it’s a lot of work now. We expect tracks like we had tonight for all of them and I hope we can continue the momentum into all of them.”
With the win on Sunday, the battle between Friesen and Sheppard rages on the track and in the stands with polar opposite fan bases. Friesen got the better of Sheppard on this one and it was for $25,000 big ones at The Home Of Heroes.