Race Report Truck series
Florida Dodge Dealers 250
The field took the green behind pole sitter Joe Ruttman, who set a record for the oldest pole sitter in the series history. However, it’s the outside line led by the Ultra Motorsports Team Scott Riggs and Ted Musgrave who pulls a head as the field enters turn one. Will T. Ribbs, who started 3rd slows up and hits the pits as first lap ends. The Hendrick teammates Jack Sprague and Ricky Hendrick moves up to 3rd and 4th as Ruttman dropped to fifth.
On Lap 4, the first yellow came out as The GMAC Financial Chevy made contact with made contact with the Net Zero Silverado piloted by Jack Sprague who bounced off of Scott Riggs’s Carquest Dodge and the Mopar number 1 of Ted Musgrave. This causes a chain reaction that has other trucks checking up and wrecking in the middle of the pack. It is here that Bryan Reffner checks up and Michael Dokken makes contact with him before being spun out my Mark Petty. Other trucks that sustained damage included Travis Kvapil, David Starr, Barry Bodine, and Rich Woodland Jr. During the corresponding caution laps, Jack Sprague and Ted Musgrave stop on pit road for repairs.
The race goes green again on lap 11 with Scott Riggs in front of Ricky Hendrick. Willy T. Ribbs lined up on the front of the inside row as he was the only truck on the track not on the lead lap. Upon entering turn 1, His teammate Joe Ruttman slides in behind him to push him towards the front of the pack putting him at the tale end of the lead lap. 2 laps later, further back in the pack, Derrick Cope got tipped yet, he maintained control by correcting it and shooting down pit road though he sustained some sheet metal damage to rear end and rear quarter-panel. As the yellow comes back out on lap 15 for debris, Joe Ruttman hits the pits with damage to his rear quarter-panel as well. As they raced back to the flag Ribbs was unable to get his lap back. During the caution laps, Musgrave and Rick Carelli stop to fix damage as well.
Scott Riggs led the field back to green on lap 18, followed by Ricky Hendrick, the Team Rensi duo of Randy Tolsma and David Donahue, Terry Cook, and Lyndon Amick. Meanwhile, on the inside lane was the lap back truck Willy T. Ribbs. However, Ribbs missed a shift coming to green and had to drop to the apron. Over the next 2 laps, Bryan Reffner, Chuck Hossfeld, and Morgan Shepherd are able to work together to push Amick pack. He eventually falls in line in 10th; while Hendrick and the Rensi trucks formed a Chevy freight train to pass Riggs. One lap after dispatching Riggs, the duo of Tolsma and Donahue made a move on Hendrick too. However, lap 24 would see them removed from lead by Cook and fellow Ford driver Hossfeld.
On lap 27, Chuck Hossfeld’s teammate, Nathan Haseleu spun and gathered up Randy MacDonald and they both wound up making contact with the turn 4 wall bringing out the third caution. The yellow brought pit stops for almost everyone.
Ted Musgrave, who has managed to keep his patches up Dodge on the lead lap, got off pit road first followed by his Ultra Motorsports teammate Scott Riggs. They led the the pack back to green on lap 33, with Terry Cook, Chuck Hossfeld, Ricky Hendrick, Jack Sprague, Randy Tolsma, Bryan Reffner, Matt Crafton, and Larry Gunselman forming the rest of the top 10. As the field took the green, Lyndon Amick hit pit road for second time due to a loose lug nut which cost him a lap. Over the next 3 laps Chuck Hossfeld got shuffled out of the top ten. During that same time, the front 2 dodges were able to pick up the lap back truck of Amick and breakaway from the pack.
As the Ultra Motorsports trucks create separate from the pack, the rest of field jockeyed for position. On lap 37, Joe Ruttman was able to grab third with a push from the lap back truck of Derrick and Bryan Reffner. Meanwhile, things got dicey further back in the pack and on lap 40, Chuck Hossfeld squeezed Jack Sprague into the wall. Sprague made hard contact but was able to keep rolling and lumps around the track to the pits but it was enough to bring out the fourth yellow flag of the day. The yellow gave the leaders a chance to swing back down pit road and also allowed Lyndon Amick to get his lap back.
However, Ricky Hendrick stayed out and Dennis Setzer was able to beat Musgrave out of the pits. Reffner and Scott Riggs round out the top five as they came back to the green flag on lap 47. Within a lap though, Setzer was able to pass Hendrick on the outside with drafting help from Musgrave and Riggs. Setzer was only in the led for a lap before Musgrave leads a draft that includes Reffner, Hendrick, Morgan Shepherd, and Joe Ruttman around the Acxiom Chevy. At the halfway point, Ruttman, Cook, and Randy Tolsma got lined up to make a move on the inside of Shepherd, who picks up Setzer. With the pack two wide, Musgrave; Reffner; and Hendrick managed to break away a little. The action though came to a stop on lap 51 as Donnie Neuenberger brought out caution number 5 after making contact with the wall. Musgrave, Reffner, Riggs, and Hendrick were among those who took the opportunity to make a pit stop under the yellow. During this yellow, both Matt Crafton and David Donahue took their Chevys back behind the wall with expired engines.
This left Morgan Shepherd, Terry Cook, and Randy Tolsma at head of the field when the green came back out on lap 53. On the restart, Willy T. Ribbs, now 5 laps down due not the aforementioned unscheduled green flag pit stops lines up on the front of the inside line. Rick Crawford, who restarted behind Tolsma was able to move down low and sniff out the draft from Ribbs and he rode it to the lead. Over the next 2 laps, Shepherd and Tolsma got shuffled back to 5th and 10th respectfully. The lap after that Cook, Musgrave, Reffner positioned themselves on the inside to get a run on Crawford, who stayed to the outside with Ruttman and Shepherd, exiting turn 2. Only Cook successfully got by Crawford before he is able to fall in line. The draft then looked to freight train around Ricky Hendrick, who was able to squirt to lead for a brief moment. Cook, Crawford, Ruttman, Musgrave and Reffner made it past him. Riding that momentum, Musgrave and Ruttman broke ranks and dart to the inside heading into turn 3 and grabbed the top spot. As the pack was in the tri-oval to complete lap 58, Chuck Hossfeld, near the back of the pack, spun down to the apron and on to the grass. He managed to gather it up and enter pit road without bringing out another caution.
On Lap 65, as the field works it way down the back stretch and into turn 3, Joe Ruttman pulled out to the inside and used a slingshot maneuver to assume the lead. The two Dodge held down the top 2 spots with Bryan Reffner, Terry Cook, and Rick Crawford in their wake. Over the next 7 laps the Dodges ran single file and pull away from the rest of the pack, where everyone swapped positions. Finally on lap 73 Crawford emerged at the head of a group that featured Scott Riggs, Dennis Setzer, Ricky Hendrick, Reffner and Cook. This drafting line spent the next lap running down the breakaway Dodges of Ruttman and Musgrave. Once they caught up, Musgrave pulled out to catch their momentum and he used it to shuffle Ruttman back. Ruttman fell back in line in 4th. As the field came back to the start/finish line, The Milwaukee Electric Tools Ford of Crawford became the first of the leaders to make a green flag pit stop. On the following lap, Riggs managed to wrestle the top spot away from his Ultra Motorsports teammate. At the end of lap 76, Riggs Musgrave, Ruttman, Cook, and Lyndon Amick, who had almost lost touch of the lead draft, all pit together under green. During these stops, the youngster Riggs pulls in too close to wall thus hindering the speed of his crew. The following lap, Reffner, Setzer, and Hendrick take their turns hitting pit lane. The following lap, the yellow flew again, this time for debris on the back straightaway. During the yellow, Setzer pulled the Acxiom Chevy behind the wall as his engine had expired.
The field took the green on lap 85, with Ricky Hendrick as the leader followed Bryan Reffner, Randy Tolsma, Joe Ruttman, Ted Musgrave, Lyndon Amick, Rick Crawford, Scott Riggs, Lance Norick, Terry Cook, Coy Gibbs, Jack Sprague, and Morgan Shepherd on the lead lap. The first couple laps back to action see the lead change hands between Hendrick, Reffner, and Musgrave. While in the lead Musgrave’s truck slowed on lap 87 as his water pump failed and his engine let go. This gave Reffner the lead again. It was short lived however as, within a lap, Ruttman, Riggs, Hendrick and Amick formed a draft that marched to head of the pack. Behind them, Crawford, Tolsma, and Reffner battled each other 3-wide. For the next 3 laps, those four were able to create separation.
With 10 laps to go, the rest of the pack caught a huge break as Ronnie Hornaday’s engine went up in a puff of smoke on the back straight bring out the 7th yellow flag of the day. During the yellow, Jack Sprague pitted to adjust the tow on the car from the damage he sustained early in the day. The field went back to green with 6 laps to go, led by Joe Ruttman, Ricky Hendrick, Scott Riggs, Lyndon Amick, and Terry Cook. Over the next 4 laps, the pack got side by side from fourth on back allowing the front three to open up over a 2 second gap. Just when it looked like the front three would be in position to settle it amongst themselves the yellow would fly for the 8th time with just 2 laps to go. This one was caused by Chuck Hossfeld breaking loose and collecting Larry Gunselman. Thus the stage was set for a green-white-checkered shoot out with Ruttman in first followed by Hendrick, Riggs, Lance Norick, and Bryan Reffner the top 5. Again, the front 3 stayed lined up and gapped the pack by 3/4 of a second when they took the white. As they entered turn 3 for the last time Riggs went to the high side of Hendrick. Coming out of the turn Riggs started to pull past Hendrick by a nose for second but, Hendrick in the lower line got a good run on exit and pulled back even just before the apex of the tri-oval. Meanwhile Ruttman stayed in front of them to claim the win with Hendrick taking second by half of the front clip if that over Riggs. Norick led the pack back to the strip to finish 4th and Randy Tolsma rounded out the top 5.
1 | Joe Ruttman ^ |
2 | Ricky Hendrick * |
3 | Scott Riggs * |
4 | Lance Norick |
5 | Randy Tolsma * |
6 | Terry Cook * |
7 | Coy Gibbs |
8 | Bryan Reffner * |
9 | Lyndon Amick |
10 | Rick Crawford * |
11 | Morgan Shepherd * |
12 | Jack Sprague * |
13 | Rick Carelli |
14 | Bobby Dotter |
15 | Donnie Neuenberger |
16 | Derrick Cope |
17 | Brian Sockwell |
18 | Larry Gunselman |
19 | Chuck Hossfeld * |
20 | Carlos Contreras |
21 | Ronnie Hornaday |
22 | Ted Musgrave * |
23 | Willy T. Ribbs |
24 | Dennis Setzer * |
25 | Travis Kvapil |
26 | Billy Bigley Jr. |
27 | Matt Crafton |
28 | David Donahue |
29 | Nathan Haseleu |
30 | Randy MacDonald |
31 | Nathan Butke |
32 | Mark Petty |
33 | Michael Dokken |
34 | David Starr |
35 | Rich Woodland Jr. |
36 | Barry Bodine |
*Led a lap ^Led the most laps
Failed to Qualify:
19 - Ricky Sanders
55 - Tim Powers
73 - Jason Small
9 - Lance Hooper
28 - Kenny Allen
00 - Ryan McGlynn