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Danny Johnson Tops Again at Ransomville

By Dave Sully

(Ransomville, NY) “Incomparable” is a word that cannot be used lightly when referring to athletes, but Danny Johnson comes as close to that definition as one can after another stellar performance in winning the 30 lap Modified Feature at Ransomville Speedway on Friday, July 23^rd. With the remnants of a soaking rain evident on the premises, Johnson blistered a very fast race track, coming from twentieth to engage leader, Boyd Mactavish, in a crowd pleasing duel before finally taking the lead three laps from the end to record the victory.

A rapidly improving Scott Just took the lead from outside pole and set the early pace, but came under siege from Anthony Rizzardo and Mactavish, who moved up smartly from fifth. The three battled for the lead until Mactavish, having taken over seconds on lap 10, grabbed the top spot after a lap 13 restart, taking Ricky Richner, back after his nasty spill last week, into second.

Johnson, who was already up to fifth on the restart, took third on lap 15 and set out after Richner and Mactavish, who had opened a big lead. A lap 18 caution, for a three car scrum in turn one, erased the advantage and set up the restart with Mactavish, Richner, and Johnson, the three principals.

When the race resumed, Johnson quickly disposed of Richner on the outside and went after Mactavish. Johnson caught Mactavish on lap 21 and the two had at it over the remaining laps. Mactavish, driving the preferred line to perfection, was able to keep Johnson at bay until lap 23 when the two executed a classic slide job times two. Johnson dove low in turn three, got under Mactavish, and slid up in front of him. Mactavish countered and drove under Johnson coming out of four and sliding up to retain the lead and send the appreciative crowd into cheers.

“Mactavish explained, “I could hear him coming, and I’ve watched him enough to know that he pulls that slide job in turn three. I knew I was starting to check up because the car was pushing. I knew he’d take a run at me, and when he did I just turned the car and diamonded it up and fired it off turn four. I had the lead on the bottom. I went by him and just took his line back away from him.”

Mactavish clung desperately to the outside as Johnson continued to challenge. On lap 27

Johnson duplicated the earlier move, but this time Mactavish couldn’t answer. Mactavish noted, “When I got back by him I just thought, ‘Okay, just don’t screw up again and you’ll be alright, but the car pushed on me again on entry. You make one mistake with him, and that’s it.”

Johnson won the highly entertaining race going away. Mactavish, with his best effort of the year, took second, followed by the game Richner, defending champion Todd Burley, who went off eighteenth, and a still sore, Pete Bicknell, who soldiered up from sixteenth in a brand new car after his other car was destroyed last week.

Johnson remarked, “I didn’t think I was going to get by him (Mactavish), and then lo and behold, there we go.” Was he surprised with Mactavish’s move to regain the lead on lap 23? He replied, “No doubt about it. He had a fast race car tonight. It was a great race, and I didn’t think I was going to get up on him. I was able to get some momentum on him and did another little slide job, and that sealed the victory.”

Mactavish added, “On that last caution (lap 18), our right rear was going down and the car started pushing on me. I’m not saying we could have held off Danny, but the car was strong. I felt really good. Then I couldn’t understand why it started pushing a couple times, so actually I started to slow up a bit and changed my line to loosen the car up. He just got back up to me. It’s hard to hold him off here. We’ll take second to Danny any day.”

The 25 lap Sportsman Feature was another barnburner and featured the top two point men in the division, defending champion Ryan Susice, celebrating his twentieth birthday, and past champion Don Spatorico. Susice bolted to the lead from eleventh, on a lap six restart, with Spatorico working his way into second on lap 16. From there he stalked Susice on the bottom as Susice flew around the outside.

Just as it appeared that Susice would score his first Ransomville victory of the season, he went a little high in the final turn, allowing Spartorico to dive under him to take the lead and the win, with Susice finishing a disappointing second.

Of the last lap heroics, Spatorcio, from Ransomville, observed, “I screwed up in one and two and thought I wouldn’t have a chance. He screwed up at the same time. In three and four that was the only chance I had, to give him a slide job, and it worked out perfectly for us. I’ve been waiting for two years to get out in front with him and race side by side. He’s a class act, runs you clean. It was a lot of fun.”

Twin 15 lap Street Stock Features went to Pat Dell, from Ransomville, who went wire to wire in the first, and Mike Greenawalt, from Niagara Falls, who took the lead on a lap nine restart after the two leaders crashed, in the second. Finally, Gary Watier Jr., from Gasport, won his first 4 Banger Feature.

NOTES: The Ransomville “Dome” worked to perfection once again, as 106 cars and a good crowd turned out on a threatening evening, with rain all over the area most of the day. Just as the program started, the sun came out and it turned into a perfect night for racing………….. Johnson’s lore continues to grow, as he arrived late, had no hot laps, and failed to qualify in his heat, which relegated him to the twentieth starting position. In the end, it obviously didn’t matter, and one gets the impression that he could start in the parking lot and win…. ……. Mactavish has been very fast this season and attributes much of his success to the switch to a Jan Cen power plant this season, a motor he purchased from Randy Chrysler, an earlier Jan Cen convert.

MODIFIED FEATURE FINISH: (30 laps) – DANNY JOHNSON, Boyd MacTavish, Ricky Richner, Todd Burley, Pete Bicknell, Todd Gordon, Scott Kerwin, Rich Vinson, Robbie Krull, Sam Crogan, Jeff McGinnis, Scott Just, James Michael Friesen, Anthony Rizzardo, Bob Broomfield, Rick Hoctor, Dave Just, Darren Latimer, Chad Brachmann, Mat Williamson, Justin Sharp, Jon Miller, Shawn Sliter, Steve Schumachner, and Tommy Flannigan. Heat winners were Kerwin, MacTavish, and Williamson.

SPORTSMAN FEATURE FINISH: (25 laps) – DON SPATORICO, Ryan Susice, Jesse Cotriss, Justin Wright, Mark Potter, Mark Chiddy, Greg Martin, Sandy Pembleton, Greg Margyka, Jipp Ortiz, James Henry, Mike Williams, Nate Reynolds, Luke Carleton, Steve Miller, Doug Coons, Gary Lindburg, Jeff Cosgrove, Dave Conant, Brett Martin, Derek Smith, Allan Wills, and Tony Purgarich. Heat winners were Henry, Brett Martin, and Spatorico.

STREET STOCK FEATURE FINISH #1: (15 laps) – PAT DELL, Gerald Poole, Chris Burek, Kenny Washburn, Mark Loveland, Scott Krull, Derrick Borkenhagen, Timmy Kott, Jacob Stefanski, Charles Harvey, Andy Smith, Ken Camidge, Jennifer Greenawalt, and Jason Smith. Heat winners were Coleman, Washburn, and Dell.

STREET STOCK FEATURE FINISH #2: (15 laps) – MIKE GREENAWALT, Brian Lonneville, Cory Sawyer, Alex Morris, Donald Rappleyea, Webb Nashwinter, Roger Israel, Brandon Sherwood, Joseph Rickard, Kirk Sherwood, Jon Richael, Jason Kuhn, Kyle Wendt, Billy Coleman, and Jaren Israel.

4 BANGER FEATURE FINISH: (12 laps) – GARY WATIER JR., Matt Jenks, Richard Zellner, Matt Matson, Steve Matson, Marika Morris, Mike Pahl, Derek Wagner, Pat O’Keefe, Jamie Woods, Zack Sam, Ryan Plante, Ken Washburn, Brett Rowles, Don Spillman, Anthony Hermanson, Chris Leone, Eugene Washburn, Matt Mouldon, Jose Torres, Joey Zimmerman, Ronel Lauiz, Todd Edsell, Dan Walchuk, Mike Robinson, Mark Eaton, and Mike McCabe. Heat winners – Morris, Pahl, and Matt Matson.