It was a solid night for Commerce racers. Lee Langford plugged along all night, and came away with a fifth place finish. Taylor Satterfield took the lead early and led for much of the event, but was overtaken by Kelley and Pollard in the later stages of the event. He fought 2007 GAS points champ Russell Fleeman at the end, coming away with a sixth place finish.
One of the big stories of the night was young Casey Roderick, who just turned 16. After starting on the front row and leading early, Roderick, driving for NASCAR champion Bill Elliott as part of Elliott's driver development program, raced in the top five most of the night, and picked up a top-ten finish as Elliott watched from the spotter's stand above the grandstands.
The top ten finishers, revised Sunday morning by Georgia Asphalt Series officials, were:
1. Bubba Pollard, Senoia, GA
2. Paul Kelley, Pendergrass, GA
3. Max Gresham, Griffin, GA
4. David Hole, Cumming, GA
5. Lee Langford, Commerce, GA
6. Taylor Satterfield, Commerce, GA
7. Russell Fleeman, Dacula, GA
8. Casey Roderick, Lawrenceville, GA
9. Brandon Johnson, Longwood, FL
10. Beau Slocumb, Macon, GA
The most frightening moments of the evening came during the 25-lap Mini-Stock event, as two drivers ended their nights upside down in separate accidents.
The first happened on lap six, when the car of Shawn McIntyre flipped onto his roof in the first turn. McIntyre climbed out of the overturned car moments later, unhurt.
The second happened on the next restart, when the car of William Ernst, of Jefferson, made contact with a slower car. Earnest's car flipped side over side five or six times down the backstretch, coming to rest at the entrance to turn three.
Earnest was uninjured, and climbed out of his crumpled racer moments later.
For more on Saturday night's events, check Wednesday's edition of The Jackson Herald or The Commerce News.
Thank you Brandon for the article!!