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Garvey Puts a Familiar Car in Victory Lane *Update

A broken transmission in practice. No problem.

Starting last in the field. No problem.

Pro Late Model driver Mike Garvey had no problem working his way through the pack to win the opening race of the Allen Turner Series 100 on Friday night at Five Flags Speedway.

“The car was awesome,� he said in Victory Lane. “It was right on the money.�

D.J. Vanderley was second, followed by T.J. Reaid, Dwayne Buggay and Kyle Benjamin. Pensacola’s Johanna Long, driving Tommy Rollins’ car, finished sixth.

Garvey’s win prompted a jubilant celebration with his pit crew and car owner Tracy Goodson of Pensacola.

“We’ve been close for a long time,� Garvey said. “It’s nice to finally break the ice and win.�

What broke in practice was his transmission. He still managed the second-fastest time in qualifying, but had to change it before the race.

He borrowed a transmission from fellow driver Anderson Bowen and the change relegated him to starting last in the 18-car field.

Korey Ruble started on the pole and led the first 30 laps until Mason Massey, a 15-year-old Georgia driver in the Bill Elliott stable, took the point. He began to pull away until the first caution came out on lap 68 when Kyle Bryant slowed on the backstretch.

Shortly after the restart, Vanderley appeared set to pass Massey, but Garvey, who had steadily worked his way through the field, took command, passing Vanderley and Massey in two laps.

He led the final 20 laps.

“Mike had the better car,� Vanderley said. “We used up our tires too early. We should have held back.�

He still had a chance when the final caution came out with three laps left. But Garvey got a great jump on the restart.

“You don’t want to see a caution that late,� Garvey said. “But you just have to concentrate on what you’re doing.�

Reaid felt he had a chance at the end.

“That last restart I threw the race away,� he said. “We had saved our tires.�

Bubba Pollard was the fastest qualifier, but rolled a 10 on the invert dice and had to start 10^th. He never challenged and finished ninth.

Long started eighth and didn’t make a charge until the final three laps when she briefly grabbed fifth place.

“I overdrove it on that last lap and fell back a spot,� she said. “But it was fun. I’m glad Tommy let me drive his car. We were just riding and pacing ourselves, then the car got too tight.�

Long’s next racing venture will be the Nationwide Series in Texas in two weeks. She said she hopes to race in another one or two Blizzard races.

Pro Late Model feature (official) – 1. Mike Garvey, 100 laps; 2. D.J. Vanderley, 100; 3. T.J. Reaid, 100; 4. Dwayne Buggay, 100; 5. Kyle Benjamin, 100; 6. Johanna Long, 100; 7. Chris Davidson, 100; 8. Mason Massey, 100; 9. Bubba Pollard, 100; 10. Korey Ruble, 100; 11. Spencer Davis, 100; 12. Zachary Hausler, 100; 13. Anderson Bowen, 99; 14. Eddie Craig, 98; 15. Kyle Bryant, 98; 16. Keith Thorpe, 44; 17. Madison Schneider, 26; 18. Troy Grisaffi, 4

Steve Buttrick passed Michael Couture on Lap 17 to win the 25-lap Sportsman feature.

Buttrick was the fast qualifier, but started ninth on the invert. As he worked his way through the field, Couture and Randy Thompson took some turns leading the race until Buttrick reached the front.

“It’s a lot of fun when you have to work your way through the field,� Buttrick said. “The car was definitely good.�

A caution came out with four laps to go, but Buttrick easily held off Shanna Ard, who finished second and Calvin Cook, who was third.

Sportsman (unofficial) – 1. Steve Buttrick; 2. Shanna Ard; 3. Calvin Cook; 4. Michael Couture; 5. Marty White; 6. Brandon Fowler; 7. James Patrick; 8. Kenny King; 9. Bo Resmondo; 10. Paul Mathis; 11. Ethan Hardin; 12. Randy Thompson; 13. Thomas Faddis; 14. Billy Hoover; 15. Johnny Greene Jr.

Gary Goodwin took the lead after one lap and easily drove away to win the 20-lap Bomber feature. Brandon Burks was second and Kenneth Bullard was third.

Bomber feature – 1. Gary Goodwin; 2. Brandon Burks; 3. Kenneth Bullard; 4. Robert Balkum; 5. Leonard

Craig; 6. Kenny Williams; 7. Courtney Rodrigues; 8. Hunter Ward; 9. James Beal; 10. Tracy Soles; 11. Michael T. Nelson; 12. Jamie Young; 13. Brandon Nettles; 14. John Kevin Merritt; 15. Williams Davis; 16. Tim Norman; 17. Tommy Lowery; 18. Matt Culbertson

• 4/2/2012 The inspection has been completed on the soft touch rev control box that was in Friday Nights Sportsman Feature Winner Steve Buttrick’s Car #33, and was found to be not within allowable specifications. Second place finisher Shanna Ard was thereby declared the winner, and Buttrick’s prize money and points were forfeited for the night.

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