2004 Racing Season Weekly Results

March
Saturday March 20th	Silver Spring Speedway: This was the first race of the year at Silver Spring. The day got off to a rocky start when the weight jacker fell off of the front suspension during warm ups and forced Steve to come in early and get repairs. This put them behind the 8 ball a little and did not allow them to make any changes before their scheduled heat race. Steve started the second heat race in the 7th position. He drove a good race and avoided a large pile up of cars in turn 2 and was able to bring the car home 5th which put him starting the "B" main in second position. He drove a great race and drove away from the field and won the "B" main. As the cars were getting ready to go out for the feature it began to rain. This ultimately forced the track officials to postpone the feature till next week to be run at the beginning of the show as a extra feature... The car ultimately looked very good and things got off to a great start.
Sunday March 21st	Williams Grove Speedway: Steve ran a good heat race and qualified for the feature in 11th position. It was a fairly typical day race and not a whole lot of passing. Steve moved up some and back some before finishing in the 10th position. Not a bad finish for the first tour race... a top ten!
Saturday March 27th	Silver Spring Speedway: Steve Started 5th in his heat race and the car was running great! He advanced up to 2nd position and finished very strong. Due to finishing in the first 2 positions in the heat race Steve had to re-draw for starting positions for the Feature Race. He drew the 2nd position for the feature! In the Feature Steve ran in the second position until lap 17 when he was passed and fell to 3rd. He held 3rd until lap 21 and then was running 4th when the 5th place car drove real deep into turn 3 and drifted out and spun himself and Steve out in the process. This forced Steve to restart the race in the 21st position with 3 laps to go. He managed to move up to 18th for the finish... a bad result but overall a great day as the car remained undamaged and Steve showed he could run up front with the best of them...
April
Saturday April 3rd	Silver Spring Speedway: This was a very difficult day for the entire team as well as the entire Wilbur Family. Earlier in the day Steve and Rob's Father Bob Wilbur passed away. Our thoughts and prayers are and will continue to be with them during this trying time... All of this puts racing in its proper perspective... it is a great sport and we all enjoy it but it is just a sport for fun... the things that really matter in life are family and friends! The team did manage to get the car ready and Steve drove a great heat race and finished 4th in the fifth heat race starting him 20th in the feature. In the feature the right rear tire went bad and this caused a very ill handling car through the corners. Steve managed to bring the car home in the 19th position. All things considered the team and Steve showed great courage even showing up to the races this night and immense focus to even make the feature race... Days will be better for all...
Saturday April 10th	Silver Spring Speedway: The team was coming off a difficult week with family related decisions and planning that had to be done all week. Steve started the 3rd heat race in the 6th position and ran a good race swapping 5th and 6th with Lanny Hake throughout the entire race but ultimately finished in the 6th position. This put Steve starting in the 8th position in the "B" main. He drove a great race and finished in the 5th position which transferred him to the Feature Race and put him starting in the 25th position. At about the half-way point the track came to the cars setup and Steve began to pick up positions and advanced a total of 10 positions to finish in the 15th position. A great run for the team!
Saturday April 17th	Silver Spring Speedway: The team was starting in the 6th position in the 4th heat race. Steve drove an outstanding race and made a pass in turns 3 & 4 on the final lap to win the heat race! This put him starting the feature in the 11th position due to points handicapping. The car was good but not great in the feature. He got behind a car that had a mechanical problem early on in the race and this cost him about 6 positions. He worked his way back up to the 14th position for the finish against some stiff competition. This was a great run for the team even though they suffered some slight damage in the feature when the car in front of them broke causing Steve to check up and another competitor to get into the back of Steve... nothing that cannot be repaired without too much fuss... Great job guys!
Saturday April 24th	Silver Spring Speedway: The team was starting again in the 6th position, this time in the 5th heat race. Steve drove an amazing race! The car was super fast! He went from 6th position to 2nd on the first lap! He then made short work of the leader and by lap 4 was beginning to stretch out his lead. A red flag brought the race to a momentary halt and then the race restarted with 6 laps to go. Over the final six laps Steve drove away from the field and ended up winning by the entire length of the front stretch... This placed him starting the feature in the 9th position. The car again looked fast and he advanced to the 5th position by the 7th lap. He then got "caught" behind the 4th place car and could not manage to pass him. This went on for about 12 laps. The car then began to "go away" as the tires began to give Steve problems. He began to fall back some and was running in the 8th position on the last lap when the two cars in front of him made contact and spun each other out. This caused Steve to have to spin the car out to avoid a collision with them... This put him to the back of the field with one lap remaining. Me managed to get past a few cars but ended up bring the car home in the 21st position. Still the team is one of only four teams left that have made every feature at the track! Also the car is in one piece and still running well... They have a very busy week ahead as they will go to the tire testing session at Silver Spring Speedway on Tuesday and then they race at Williams Grove Speedway on Friday, April 30th and finally they will go to Silver Spring Speedway on Saturday, May 1st... WOW! Good luck guys!
Friday April 30th	Williams Grove Speedway: Steve ran a good heat race and qualified for the feature in 14th position. Steve moved up to the 10th position by the 10th lap and the team had decided earlier in the night that they would pull in and park the car if there was no chance of winning the race... So Steve pulled in and parked that car and they will come out swinging tomorrow at Silver Spring... They still managed a 21st finishing position and had a successful night!
May
Saturday May 1st	Silver Spring Speedway: The first week with the Hoosier tires has arrived. Steve started his heat race in the 6th position and fell back some and did manage to move up to finish in the 6th position. This put him in the "B" main starting in the 8th position. He drove a good race and finished in the 5th position, which put him in the feature starting in the 25th position. He drove a good race and brought the car home in the 18th position and more importantly in one piece. The team is feeling good and they think they have the tires figured out from here on out...
Saturday May 8th	Silver Spring Speedway: The team was starting again in the 6th position, this time in the 4th heat race. Steve drove a great race. The car was good but not great... He finished in the 4th position in the heat race. This placed him starting the feature in the 19th position. During the time until the feature the team made some changes to the car and it was now very fast... Steve advanced to the 10th position by the 10th lap. He then got "caught" behind a spinning car and got hit from behind and spun out while trying to avoid the car in front of him. This forced him to the back of the field with half the race already over. Steve continued on a tear and brought the car home in the 14th position. The team is now one of only three teams left that have made every feature at the track! Great job guys!
Saturday May 15th	Silver Spring Speedway: Race Cancelled Due to Rain
Saturday May 22nd	Silver Spring Speedway: Steve started the 5th heat race in the 6th position. The car was not handling properly and he fell back to the 8th position. He did manage to get the car back up to the 6th position for the finish but failed to qualify for the feature and was forced to run in the "B" main. In the "B" main he started in the 10th position and ran a good race but the car was still not handling properly. He moved up some and fell back some and managed to finish in the 9th position. This ended his streak of consecutive feature starts but the team still gets some points for the finish and they still had the Clean Technologies Shootout to compete in. During the break the team found the problem that was causing their handling woes. Steve started the shootout in the 11th position. He drove a outstanding race and managed to finish in the 6th position after the first 10 lap segment. This gave him enough points to be fourth in the standings and put him into the second segment. The winner from segment 1 picked a pill for the invert of the second race and drew pill 4! This put Steve on the pole for the final segment. He made no mistake in this segment and drove away from the field to a 3/4 straightaway win in the 8 lap shootout... good for $1,000 courtesy of Clean Technologies. Great job Steve and the entire crew!
Saturday May 29th	Silver Spring Speedway: This race was a time trail qualifying event. Steve timed 18th fastest which was good enough to start him 2nd in his heat race. He finished second and this put him starting the feature in the 16th position. He drove a good race and then got caught up in a wreck that happened in front of him and he was hit from behind. This messed that car up fairly bad but he was still able to finish the race although Steve had a horribly ill handling car on his hands... He ended the night in the 19th position. The team will look to regroup and make some repairs to the car this week and get ready for a busy June... Keep up the great work guys!
June
Saturday June 5th	Silver Spring Speedway: Race Cancelled Due to Rain
Saturday June 12th	Silver Spring Speedway: Steve started his heat race in the 6th position and drove a good race and brought the car home in the 3rd position and was challenging for the runner up spot at the end. This placed him starting the feature in the 13th position. The car was very fast and he was moving through the field rapidly and then on lap 6 another car slip up on Steve and ran over the front of the car. This ended a promising night for the Auto Locator Team and caused extensive damage to the front of the car. The team will work hard and repair the car for this Saturday at Silver Spring. The team races twice this week. First at Port Royal for Auto Locator Night on Wednesday June 16th. Look for the ghost to be back on the track for this race... and then the team races again at Silver Spring on Saturday June 19th... Go get em' Guys!
Wednesday June 16th	Port Royal Speedway: The third Tour race of the year and the final "draw" for starting position race was on June 16th at Port Royal. Steve drew pill number 37 and this put him 8th in the 2nd heat race. The track was follow-the-leader and Steve finished in 8th position. This put him starting in the 21st position. He drove a good race and avoided debris from other victims of the night and brought the car home in the 15th position. Live to fight another day was the motto of the night and a very wise choice by Steve and the team...
Saturday June 19th	Silver Spring Speedway: Steve started his heat race in the 5th position and drove a great race, and won his heat race! This placed him starting the feature in the 7th position. The car was very fast and he was moving well through the field. By lap 15 Steve was in the runner up spot and set his sights on the leader Dave Ort. He began to track him down... Steve was forced to run the low line as Dave was in the preferred high groove. Steve raced Dave hard and clean and ended up settling for 2nd by a few car lengths... An outstanding run for Steve and the Team!! Way to go Guys!
Saturday June 26th	Silver Spring Speedway: Steve started the fifth heat race in the 6th position and got a great start and quickly moved up to the 4th position on the first lap. The car was not working exactly the way the team wanted it to and Steve fell back to finish the heat race in the 5th position. This placed him starting the "B" main in the 5th position. He ended up finishing the "B" main in the 6th position and this put him starting the feature in the 26th position. The car still was not the way the team wanted it to be but it was a little better and Steve moved as high as 15th position but ended up finishing the feature in the 18th position. The team will track down the problem and also do some other work on the car for this weeks race...
July
Saturday July 2nd	Silver Spring Speedway: Things did not get off to a good start tonight as Steve was caught behind a car that blew its motor and was forced to take evasive action and ended up between the wall and the car with the blown motor. One problem... there was not enough room to put the car in that spot. The car suffered minor damage but Steve was forced to park it for the remainder of the heat race. After the team made some quick "band-aid" repairs to the car Steve was forced to start the "C" main in last position. He managed to finish in the 5th position which did transfer him to the "B" main but put him starting that race in 2nd from last position. The car ran great again but he could only manage to finish in the 8th position. This left him two spots short of qualifying for the feature race. All-in-all things could have been a lot worse than they were and the car did run well all things considered... The team will pack it up and bring it back next week for another run... Keep up the great effort guys!
Saturday July 10th	Silver Spring Speedway: Steve started his heat race in the 6th position and drove a great race and despite a right rear tire going flat managed to bring the car home in the 3rd position. The team prepared the car for the feature where they were starting in the 10th position. This time in the feature the left rear tire was going flat and caused problems throughout the entire race. Steve managed to bring the home car in the 17th position. The team found some other problems that caused their back-slide in the feature and should have things corrected for this weeks 52 lap race... The team is currently in the 13 positions in the points standings with a lot of racing left in the season!
Saturday July 17th	Silver Spring Speedway: (52nd Anniversary Race ~ 52 laps) Race Postponed Due to Rain till Sept. 4th
Saturday July 24th	Silver Spring Speedway: Steve raced in the 5th heat race where he finished in the 5th position. This placed him in the "B" main where he started 5th and finished in the 6th position. This placed him starting "Shotgun" on the field in the 26th position... He drove a good race and picked up 12 positions to bring the car home in the 14th position. A great finish for starting at the back of the field!
Sunday July 25th	Susquehanna Speedway Park: The team raced at Susquehanna Speedway Park in the make-up rain date from the original race scheduled on Thursday July 22nd. Steve Started 3rd in his heat race and was challeging for 2nd at the end but brought the car home in the 3rd position. This put him directly in the feature starting 7th. He drove a good race although he had a bad start due to the cars in fron of him... He brought the car home in the 5th position, for a great finish finish at SSP!
Saturday July 31st	Silver Spring Speedway: Race Cancelled Due to Rain
August
Saturday August 7th	Silver Spring Speedway: Steve started the 5th heat race in the 6th position. He quickly moved up to 3rd by the completion of the first lap. He then advanced to the 2nd position and was closing on the leader of the race when a caution came out. On the restart he was working on passing the leader when the car started slowing and came to a stop in turn 1. It turns out the belt came off the fuel pump... This forced him to the "C" main starting dead last. He drove a great race in the "C" main and finished in the 5th position. This transferred him to the "B" main starting in the 20th position he drove a good race but time constraints prevented the team from making any changes from the heat race until this race and the setup was off a little. Steve worked his way up to the 14th position before the end of the race. The team will regroup and try to find out what caused the belt problem this week.
Saturday August 14th	Silver Spring Speedway: Steve raced in the 3rd heat race where he started in the 5th position and finished in the 6th position. This placed him in the "B" main where he started 8th and finished in the 11th position. He missed the feature. This is due mainly to the engine changes they needed to make to correct the belt problem. This will be corrected this week with just some tuning and they should be back on their game this weekend... Good luck guys!
Saturday August 21st	Silver Spring Speedway: Race Cancelled Due to Rain
Saturday August 28th	Silver Spring Speedway: Steve raced in the 1st heat race where he started in the 5th position and finished in the 4th position. This placed him in the feature starting 16th. He drove a good race on a very tacky and fast surface and finished in the 14th position. The team is very upbeat and looking forward to the upcoming races this weekend...
September
Saturday September 4th	Silver Spring Speedway: Tonight was the postponed 52-lap anniversary race at the Speedway. Steve timed 3rd fastest in hot laps and he was very fast in the fourth heat race. He started 4th and quickly moved up through the pack to take the lead and then drove away from the field and won his heat race going away... This placed him starting the feature in the 8th position. Unfortunately the changes that the team made to the car went the wrong direction and Steve went backwards rapidly. It also turns out they had a bent rear suspension that occurred sometime early on in the feature. On lap 27 the race was red-flagged due to a wreck involving "Wild" Bill Heckert. Unfortunately Bill sustained fatal injuries and passed away in this wreck... Some eye-witnesses said that Bill was slumped over going into the turn others said that his throttle stuck and was the cause... Whatever the cause, all of the racing community mourns the loss of this racer and grieves for his wife and family and friends. He will be missed... Steve managed to pass a few cars toward the end of the feature and brought the car home in the 17th position. Racing took a backseat this night to the reality of the loss of a fellow competitor... Rest in Peace Bill!
Saturday September 5th	Susquehanna Speedway Park: All teams in attendance tonight were grieving the loss of "Wild" Bill from just one night earlier. Steve was starting in the 4th position in the 3rd heat race. On the start the pole sitter slid up the track in turns 1 & 2 and managed to disrupt 3 or 4 other cars including Steve. This allowed positions 5-9 drivers to slip underneath everyone and Steve was now in the 8th position after 2 turns! He drove his heart out and brought the car home in the 5th position. This place him in the feature starting in the 15th position. Steve drove a outstanding race and the car worked great and he ended the night in the 6th position. Just what the doctor ordered for this team a this time! Great run guys!
Saturday September 11th	Silver Spring Speedway: The team brought the car to the track with the same setup they had just had so much success with at Susquehanna Speedway Park earlier in the week. Unfortunately this did not translate into success at Silver Spring. Steve Started the 4th heat race in 5th position. He got fouled up by a another car on the initial start and lost numerous positions. He managed to pick up some of those positions but still finished in the 7th position. This place him starting 14th in the "B" main needing to get to the top 6 to transfer to the feature. The car still was not handling properly and Steve finished in the 15th position. A disappointing night for sure but the car is intact and with only a few races left the bigger picture needs to be considered at this point. The night was filled with tributes to "Wild" Bill Heckert including all of the drivers stopping after lap 24 and allowing Bill's Backup car to circle the track and take a final checkered flag... The racing community and drivers really stepped up to help out Bill's family during this time of loss...
Saturday September 18th	Silver Spring Speedway: (Sportsman 100) Race Postponed Due to Rain and Flooding until September 25th.
Friday September 24th	Williams Grove Speedway: Steve had a good car at the track and was running in the 3rd position in the feature when the car slowed and he was out of fuel with 3 laps to go... He ended up being credited with the 17th position in the race.
Saturday September 25th	Silver Spring Speedway: (Sportsman 100) Steve had a very good car tonight and time trial very well. This locked him into the feature and put him starting in the 8th position. The car ran well although towards the end of the race the car was having a miss in the engine. Steve went on to get a good solid top 10 finish with an 8th place run in the sportman 100. Great job guys!
October
Saturday October 2nd	Silver Spring Speedway: This was the final race of the 2004 season at Silver Spring Speedway. The weather was not the best and the track was able to get in all of the heat races before the rain began to fall and postpone the race to the next night on Sunday evening October 3rd. Steve did not have a good qualifing run the night before so he was forced to run the "C" main. He managed to adveance to the "B" main but did not transfer to the feature... The season ended on a sour note but the team should be in really good shape comespring of next year to make a run at a great 2005 racing season... See you then!! Have a great winter!