Friday August 3rd, 2012   Long Pond Pennsylvania - Practice started for the Stars of the N4Nites Cup Series with a warm 82 degrees, clear with 7 mph wind out of the west.  Jeff Prutzman fresh off his first win of the 2012 seasons was the fastest on the track running a 53.661 second lap followed closely by former N4Nites Cup Champion Ben Simmons closely behind running a 53.863 second lap.  John Boneske lead the rest of the pack followed by Chuck Hoskins, Bob Moore and rounding out the field Daniel Minear.  Practice concluded with the absence of 2012a cup champion Alex Shoemaker who failed to show for the event, leaving another hole in our N4Nites roster, a hole that was made event bigger by the absence of former cup champion Dave Porter and the 24 team.  “Shoemaker and Porter are such a big part of our League and when they are not here it’s a very big void in field and our closely knit group.”  “We may all be competitors on the track but we are all friends and they are missed when they are not here.”  Simmons former Cup Champion and driver of the 44 Buy More Chevy.

Qualifying ending with much of the same lineup to start the Pocono 250 the fourth race of the 2012b Season with Jeff Prutzman taking the top stop with 53.795 second lap with Ben Simmons second with a 53.848 second lap, and John Boneske with a 54.818 second lap.  Bob Moore started 4th, Daniel Minear 5th, and Chuck Hoskins rounding out the provisional starters that did not take a qualifying lap.

The green flag dropped saw Simmons and that green flamed 44 Chevy pull out to the lead the field into turn 1 which saw the 44 get loose, the 52 sail into turn one brushing the wall allowing the 97 of Moore to get a hard charge out of 2 to grab the lead from Simmons at the tunnel turn.  The 44 Buy More Impala stayed patient with the 97 giving him room and waiting for his car to wash up the track to take the lead back, but a electrical problem with the 97 forced him to pit on the second lap of the race.  Simmons car loose at first tightened up and started running very constant laps pulling away from the field.

Prutzman after lightly tagging the wall in turn 1 fell back as far as 4th but lost a lot of time to the leader, N4Nites Rookie Chuck Hoskins is no rookie to racing having a strong solid car all night, which seem to be very closely running with N4Nites Veteran John Boneske back from a 3 race layoff.   N4Nite rookie Daniel Minear is still learning to adjust his 88 Chevy and is showing strong improvement and handles his car well in traffic and throughout a run.

The pitting started with Simmons and Prutzman and Hoskins started to trying fuel mileage early by staying out 1 or two laps loner than the Buy More Chevy out front enabling Simmons to pull away to a larger and larger lead each and every pit stop.

Just after the second round of pit stops about lap 25 Bob Moore’s Ford went up in smoke bringing out a caution, and that was a great sight for the 52 xfinity team to be able to slide back up to the bumper of the 44.  The same running ended the cycle of pit stops and as the green flag waved again Simmons had a mirror full of Prutzman, Simmons typically loose on the first lap let the 52 slide by and pulled into the tracks of the 52.  Coming into lap three after the green Simmons was once again on Prutzman in turn one where the Prutzman car when evil loose on him pushing him up the track and hard into the turn 2 wall allowing Simmons to take the lead back and pull away to almost a 2 second lead.

The run continued with Simmons inching his way away from the 52 car as Prutzman seemed to be loose and had trouble running consistent laps behind the leader.  The Xfinity Chevy brushing the wall a couple of times the crew chief was heard telling Jeff to conserve, and after a big win last week Jeff did just that started conserving and clutching his chevy around the track even allowing the 67 and 49 to pass him.  As green flag stops started again Simmons continued to grow his lead bigger and bigger, as fuel mileage started to be talked about in the 44 pit, knowing they wouldn’t not be able to save enough for one more stop Simmons continued his solid pace out front gaining a 25 second lead on Hoskins and even more on the 49 and 52.

18 to go showed the 44 pitting with the gas needle on empty, with four fresh tires Simmons came back on track just 4 seconds off the current leader in the 53 Chevy, Simmons was laying down some very fast laps in hopes to get to the bumper of the 52 before he pitted, but was just 2 second short as the 52 pitted for what the Xfinity Team though was there last pit stop.  Simmons wanted to stop with the 52 car but the Buy More crew chief left him out until 9 to go as the 44 team pulled in to top off and get right side tires, the two tire stop got the Buy More Chevy out in front of Prutzman.   There Simmons continued to drive just hard enough to keep the 52 behind him.  The 67 of Hoskins pitted to top off to get to the end of the race as Prutzman started closing the gap on Simmons when the 52 pushed too hard to get to 44’s bumper in the tunnel turn and in turn three to allow Simmons to walk away, Prutzman had to pit with his fuel light popping on telling him he needed to top off this Xfinity Chevy.

Simmons Buy More Chevy was able to cruise away to his second win of the 2012b Season and extend his points lead while getting the needed bonus points for a Chase Run!

Jamie Little caught up with Simmons in Victory Lane.

Jamie:  “Last week you had the dominant car like you did most of today, what made today’s outcome different than last week when the 52 car was able to our fuel your 44 Chevy?”
Simmons:  “Jamie it was simple tonight, after last week’s heart break we just decided to run our race on our pace and worry about fuel or the other drivers until near the end, and our Buy More Chevy was very solid and ran fast consistent laps, Jeff had such a strong car and very fast car tonight very but looked very unstable when we were behind him and our car seems more consistent over the run then Jeff and am so proud of him and excited to see him up front more and more”

Jamie:  “You took some time off in 2012a season, why the layoff for you and the 44 team?”
Simmons:  “I just needed a break, to refocus and get back to having fun when I come out to the track, sometimes the competitiveness of racing gets the better of us and I needed a break so that when I come out to race it was fun again!”

Jamie:  ”This is your 6th or 7th year in the N4Nites Cup series and it’s your first cup win at your home track, how does it feel to finally get a win here?”
Simmons:  "I have always worked very very hard to run well here and never could find the right balance to keep the momentum off the corners.  We made a big effort to run a lot of practice here, and at the ICR charity race here I found s little something, and then testing this week we found a good balance that was loose on the start but strong and tightened up perfectly on the long run and this is what you get for being diligent and working hard!  I would just like to thank Buy More and Nerd Herd, Reese’s Peanut Butter Cups, this 44 crew we didn’t have the fastest over all car but they gave me a great piece and so thrilled to get those bonus points for the chase, plus we are very excited to get back to Watkins Glen next week.  The team and I love that track and are always l ooking forward to it!”



Friday July 27th, 2012   It was a warm summer week at the Brickyard.  Sunshine and 80 degree temps made the track slick and tricky.  All the way through the practice sessions the sun was out in full intensity, but when it came down to race time, the clouds rolled in, throwing a curveball at the race teams that required drastic measures.

The qualifying grid had Ben Simmons on the pole and Prutzman on the front row.  The ever consistant Chuck Hoskins was lined up right behind Simmons, and the big surprise was Alex Shoemaker starting in the middle of the field.

At the wave of the green flag, Ben Simmons was hooked up and leaving the rest of the field behind.   Prutzman was hot on his heels with Chuck Hoskins in tow, but Simmons was just way too fast.

Shoemaker got loose in turn 1 on the start and fell to the back, saving his car from damage but killed his tires, forcing him to pit on lap 2.  Later on lap 5, Alex appeared to be slowing to pit and locked up his brakes, missing pit road, hitting the wall, and called it a night.

Also on lap 2, Bob Moore bounced his car off the outside wall in turn 1 and then the inside wall coming out of turn 2.  Even though Bob's car suffered serious damage, he gathered it up and continued on.

None of these incidents managed to bring out a yellow flag, probably because of how spread out the field was.

As the race progressed, it was apparent that Simmons had the fastest car.  Ben was adding a half a second to his lead with every crossing he made of the famous red brick start finish line.  The other teams had to accept the fact that they needed to change something and they needed to do it quickly.

Fuel strategy is always the first thing that comes to mind, especially at tracks as large as this one is.  Some drivers tried to stretch it a little too long, a little too late.  Bobby Rafuse ran out of fuel on pitroad, a hundred yards or so from his pitbox on lap 38.  Chuck Hoskins ran out of fuel on pitroad, but did make it into his box on lap earlier on lap 13.

Attrition comes in many forms and rookie Daniel Minear was a victim on lap 25 when his motor gave out.   Panic level rose for the 44 team as they were coming down pit road at the same time the 88 was pulling down pitroad bellowing out smoke.  A caution would have taken the 44 team from a more than comfortable lead to being a lap down.

The 52 team gave up on trying to make their car faster after the second green falg stop of the night.   They were in fuel saving made as soon as the numbers looked possible.  As the laps wound down, the 52 team was only concerned with staying on the lead lap.  They were saving fuel, starting 3 stops from the end, and it paid off on the last lap as they drove by a fuel drained 44 in turn 4 to take the checkered flag



Friday July 20th, 2012   Kentucky Speedway, a 1.5-mile, tri-oval, built in Sparta, Kentucky.  The second track in the N4Nites 2012b schedule that the stars would have to overcome.  After the race in Daytona, going caution free, some hoped tonight would do the same.  Practice speeds were fast around this 1.5-mile track.  Alex Shoemaker, paced the practice session with a 28.76, followed by Glen Webb, 29.14, Geoff Kincade, 29.19, Ben Simmons, 29.23, and Bob Moore took the fifth spot with a 29.30.  Radio chatter could be picked up around the garage, and it seemed like some drivers were complaining about tire wear, while others were complaining about the overall handling of their cars. Soon they wouldn't have to worry, because qualifying was fast approaching.

Qualifying finally came, and it was time for these drivers to show what they were made of, and to go out there, drive it like they stole it, and put down a lap that would impress their competitors.   Shoemaker couldn't back up his practice lap, and ran a 28.80, Kincade took second with a 28.93, Simmons took third with a 29.07, Chuck Hoskins, fourth, with a 29.26, and Jeff Prutzman rounded out the top 5 with a 29.66.  Happy hour saw a huge temperature spike, going from a cool 60 degree's, back up to 70.  This would throw a wrench in some of the drivers setups, leaving them scrambling to figure out what they would do.

Happy hour then ended, and the cars were pushed out onto pit lane, lined up, and prepared for 107 laps around this 1.5 mile track.  Shoemaker lead them to the green flag, and got a decent jump on second place, Kincade, Simmons would also pass Kincade and fall into second, Kincade would slot in third.  Prutzman, would come from fifth and pass Hoskins for fourth into turn 1.  Moore would try the same move, and prevail in turn 3.  Moore, showing he had a good car, would charge by Prutzman, passing him out of turn 2 and down the back stretch.

Coming out of turn 4 though, Kincade would have a moment when his car got sideways.  He was able to save it, get it straight again, and continue, but would lose 3 spots, and fall back to sixth.   Moore would then pass Simmons on lap 4, and try to catch Shoemaker.  Shoemaker would pull away though, with no one able to keep up. But Shoemaker's night almost took a turn for the worst when later on in the race on lap 85, Webb would try to pit but come up two lanes infront of Simmons.  With no where for Simmons to go, he got into Webbs bumper, spinning his own car out and up towards the wall.  Moore would also get unlucky in this exchange when Webb came down the track trying to get to pit lane infront of him, also spinning his car into the outside wall.  This would be the only yellow of the night and would allow everyone to make it the distance on fuel and tires.  Hoskins would recieve the lucky dog on this yellow, and be the only car to finish the race on the lead lap, and the only other car to lead a lap tonight.  Hoskins lead 5 laps, while Shoemaker lead the other 102, and took the checkered flag in Kentucky.

Jamie Little caught up with Shoemaker in victory lane...

Jamie:  Congratulations Alex, you're sitting here in victory lane, how does it feel?
Alex:  It feels real good Jamie.  I think we had something for Ben at Daytona, but just had an unfortunate accident happen to us getting onto pit road.  Came here hoping to put that behind us and I think we achieved that.  We did a real good job of getting a setup under the car that I could drive and would stay free for most the run.  It got real tight with about 6 laps to go on a tank of fuel and tires.

Jamie:  The temperature swing, how bad did that effect your car?
Alex:  Man, it was a totally different setup from Practice to Happy Hour that we had in the car.   It was just as fast I think, we did a good job tweaking it in the short 10 minutes we get for Happy Hour.  Made alot of adjustments throughout the race that made the car alot better.

Jamie:  Thanks Alex, congradulations on your win!



Friday July 13th, 2012   Datyona, the monsterous speedway would play host to again to the second segment kick off for the drivers of the N4Nites cup series.  Many hoped to get their seasons started right, with a win.   It was a cool 79 degrees, wind was blowing North at 9 miles per hour.  Drivers were fast under the cool conditions.  The draft being the great equalizer here, no one knew who had the fastest car.   Glenn Webb lead the first practice of the night, running a 45.96, Shoemaker followed running a 46.04, and John Boneske matched his time, Chuck Hoskins ran a 46.06, and Ben Simmons rounded out the top 5 running a 46.11.

Qualifying saw only three drivers take times, Glenn Webb took pole running a 47.31, Jeff Prutzman ran a 47.46, and Chuck Hoskins ran a 47.63.  Daniel Minear, Boneske, Shoemaker, and Simmons took a provisional start, Minear starting 4th, Boneske 5th, Simmons 6th, and Shoemaker 7th.  Shoemaker was asked after qualifying why or his team mates did not run a qualifying lap, he simply said, "I wanted that last pit box, and my team mates for tonight wanted their box close to ours, easy in, easy out."

Happy hour saw teams dial in their cars for the last 10 minute session, find their pit boxes, and take the last rest break before a long, 80 lap race.  As their cars were pushed onto the starting grid, talk was high about how fast it was going to be, and hope they nailed the tape right.  After a long pace lap, the green flag was in the air.

The field quickly got into single file, Webb took the lead, followed by Hoskins, Minear, Prutzman, Boneske, Shoemaker, and Simmons.  They would settle in and run single file, and pretty much in that order with the exception of Prutzman falling back and what looked like trying to save some fuel.   Green flag pit stops would come 11 laps into it, everyone but Prutzman pitting.  Here is where the teams strategy would unfold, some chosing to take two tires and alternate between the lefts/rights and some taking no tires and 1 1/2 cans of fuel.  It would prove to be the right decision for some, and wrong for others.  Hoskins would beat Webb off pit road taking that top spot, followed by Webb, Simmons, moving from 6th to 3rd, Shoemaker, moving from fifth to fourth, Minear, falling from third to fifth, and Boneske, falling to sixth.

Boneske would end up falling back a couple of seconds from the leaders, and his partners went back to save him.  Shoemaker, and new found dancing partner Simmons, fell back and picked him and Minear up.  The race would then go caution free, a rarity for Daytona.  Two note worthy things did happen though, and officals almost called a caution for one.  On the second set of pit stops, Simmons would accidently rear end Boneske, and Boneske would take the blunt of the blow, ending his night.  And on the last set of pit stops, Minear would get in to hot, wheel hop his car, and get into Shoemaker, ending his chances at victory.  Simmons would survive this chaos, and go on to get his first win of the 2012b season.



Friday June 29th, 2012   It was a cloudy day in Louden, New Hampshire as the drivers of the N4Nites pulled their cars into the final race of the 2012 Segment A series.  As the practice session dawned on, Eric Monaco, returning for this race, paced the field with a 28.08.  Followed by Shoemaker, 28.55, Ben Simmons, 28.59, John Boneske with a 28.659, and Glenn Webb rounded out the top 5 with a 28.79.   As qualifying neared, the clouds stayed, and left speeds insanely fast.  Eric Monaco backed up his practice time, running a 28.07, followed by Jeff Prutzman, who improved tremendously from his practice lap, running a 28.53, Shoemaker took third and ran a 28.751, Boneske took fourth, running a 28.76, and Bob Moore rounded out the top 5 with a 28.90.

As the green flag drew closer, the temperatures dipped to a cool 73 degrees.  Making the track just a bit slicker, and giving more speed for the drivers.  As the green flag waved, the drivers josseled for position, but it would not take long for the first issues of the night, when in the first turn, saw Bob Moore spin out, and not hit anything, but Glenn Webb would not get that lucky, spinning out on the high side of the track and backing it into the wall.  No yellow flag and the drivers kept on.  On lap 16 we saw the first cation, when Simmons lost control and spun.  He just barely taped the wall, causing little to no damage and continued on with his night.

Everyone would pit to get fuel and fresh rubber.  Green flag was back out on lap 20, as Monaco still lead the way, followed by Shoemaker, Prutzman, Boneske, and Simmons.  But the yellow flag would show again that same lap when Webb, having an issue in turn three, got loose under braking and lost the car, going into the outside wall.  Everyone but Monaco would pit to top off.  The green flag would fly again on lap 25, and this time no yellow would come out.  The drivers would make it to their first round of green flag stops when Monaco stopped on lap 46, with Simmons.   Shoemaker came in on lap 50, followed by Chuck Hoskins.  Boneske and Prutzman would round out green flag stops when they pit on lap 52.

But we'd see the yellow again, when it came out on lap 57, for Moore spinning and hitting the outside wall.  Drivers would again come in and top off, taking fresh tires and fuel.  The green flag would fly on lap 64, with Monaco still in the lead, followed by Shoemaker, Boneske, Simmons, and Prutzman.  Shoemaker would have his first issues of the night on lap 91, getting to low on the track and spinning out.  Simmons was also involved in the mess when Shoemaker rolled down the track straight into his path.  This caution was a devastating blow to the 52 team who had worked on a fuel strategy during practice, when they saw how much faster all the other cars were.  "We saved fuel all day long, knowing it was our only chance", said Prutzman after the race.  "There might have been one other car out there besides us that could make it to the end, and it wasn't Monaco."

Overall, Monaco showed a dominating preformance, leading 112 laps, and taking the checkered flag.   Shoemaker took home the championship, and Boneske came in second, capping off a really good year for him.  Jeff Prutzman came in third, finishing off his decent season.  Dan Minear came out of the mess in fourth, capping off a season that saw him win one race, and lead a couple of laps.   Next season kicks off with a non points event, then straight into Daytona.  Can Shoemaker sweep both segments, or will someone else take home the championship gold?

Jamie:  Alex, you just won the championship, how does it feel?
Alex:  It feels great Jamie.  I couldn't have done it without an extreme amount of help though.  Both my teammates, John, and Dave, helped me out a ton with setups and setup help.  I don't think I could have done it without them.  I also want to thank the admins here, without them, we wouldn't be here to race.  I'm looking forward to the next segment and hopefully able to keep this momentum going.



Friday June 22nd, 2012   In the heart of Wine Country, sits the 1.99 mile, Infineon Raceway.  The next step for the drivers to endure the heat, and challenges of turning left and right.  Seven drivers showed up to try and conquer the track.  This week saw the highest temperatures yet for the N4Nites series, with them skyrocketing into the 90's.  With practice under way, championship leader Alex Shoemaker led the drivers running a 1:14:56, followed by Simmons, and Bob Moore rounded out the top three with a 1:18:40.  After practice, and a quick cool down of the engines, the drivers went out on track for a fast qualifying session.  Only three drivers would attempt laps, Shoemaker, Simmons, and Chuck Hoskins.  Shoemaker took the top spot with a 1:15:205, not backing up his practice lap.  Simmons though, would back up his practice lap, running a 1:15:43, while in practice he ran 1m15.468s.

After a quick happy hour, drivers noted the temperature moved up to 94 degree's.  As the drivers were on the pace lap, their crew chiefs could be heard over the radios, telling their drivers to save the tires, and gears.  The green flag waved, and would stay out for the race.  Shoemaker got out to an early lead, but would only hold that for two laps, when he let Simmons by.  Shoemaker would closely follow Simmons, and take the lead back on the first round of green flag pit stops.  For Shoemaker though, it would prove costly as he got caught speeding down pit road and would never recover.

Shoemaker wasn't the only one having issues, Billy Squier took a couple spins around the track and eventually took it to the garage and retired.  On lap 13, Gear issues would take out Bob Moore, and on the very next lap, even more gear issues, forcing Jeff Prutzman to retire.   Losing gears was the trend of the night as Shoemaker also lost fourth gear and retired for the night.
In the end, it was Ben Simmons who would take the checkered flag, and returning to victory lane.



Friday June 15th, 2012   The Irish hills of Michigan played scenic overview as the drivers of the N4Nites Cup series took to the track.  It was a cool 82 degree's, the track had grip, and the drivers were fast.  Glenn Webb paced practice, running a 36.14, followed by Shoemaker, running a 36.199, and returning driver Ben Simmons, running a 36.21.  As practice ended, and qualifying began, the temperature stayed the same, 82 degrees.  But no one would end up backing their practice times, as Shoemaker, who sat on the pole for all of 3 minutes, would run a 36.26.   But his time would be disallowed when he coasted down pitroad, faster then the speed limit.   Giving the pole to Boneske who ran a 36.44, and Bob Moore took third with a 36.76.  Everyone else took a provisonal start, including Jeff Prutzman, 3th, Bobby Rafuse 4th, Glenn Webb 5th, Ben Simmons 6th, Daniel Minear 7th, Chuck Hoskins 8th, and Shoemaker rounded out the night with 9th.

As the field took the green, Boneske got a good start, and pulled out in front.  He was closely followed by Moore, Webb, and Simmons.  But it wouldn't be long until we got our first caution, when Boneske and Webb would tangle down the back stretch, sending both drivers towards the inside wall.  Luckily for both, they didn't hit anything, but Boneske did radio in saying his motor wasnt at full song.  Everyone would pit for some fresh rubber and fuel, except Prutzman and Minear, who stayed out to try and lead a lap.  Shoemaker, took two tires to get out first, and get his lap led, while everone else took four.  Shoemaker would drive down with one to go, and take lefts, and top off.

The green flag would fly, on lap 9.  But the yellow were still lurking.  Going into turn 1/2, Moore hit the apron, and lost it.  Coming up the track straight into the path of Prutzman, who would take the brunt of the blow.  Damaging his car, and ending his night.   Everyone pitted to top off, and it would be Boneske who had the lead, followed by Shoemaker, Prutzman, Simmons, and Rafuse.  As the green flag flew on lap 13, Boneske would pull over and let Shoemaker by, and Prutzman did the same with Simmons.  Simmons would get by Boneske on the back stretch, and would now start the chasing down Shoemaker.  The yellow would fly again on lap 21 though, when Webb got loose in turn 1/2, slowing his car down, and Rafuse getting into his rear end, sending him, Webb, and Moore towards the outside wall, along with Boneske, and Minear towards the inside wall.  Minear would save his car, but Boneske would not have the same luck as earlier, and nailed the inside wall, killing his car.

The Green flag would wave on lap 26, as Shoemaker lead Simmons, who was followed by, Moore and Hoskins.  Shoemaker would hold the lead, but could never open up a gap bigger then half a second.  As green flag pit stops would start on lap 40, Simmons blew up going into turn 1/2, bringing out the last yellow of the night.  After pitstops, Shoemaker still held command, followed by Hoskins, Prutzman, Minear, and Moore.  It would then stay green flag and fuel strategy would come into play.  Shoemaker's crew chief radioed to him that he was going to be 3 laps short, try to conserve and hold time. But in the end, Shoemaker couldn't save those 3 laps, and had to pit, topping off and taking no tires.  In the end, it was Shoemaker who took the checkered for the second week in a row, giving him his second chase victory, and fifth overall this season.  Jamie Little caught up with him in victory lane.

Jamie:  You just got your second chase win in a row, how do you feel?
Alex:  Really lucky...I've got awesome team-mates.  John gave us his setup, and it really clicked with our car and my driving style.  I gotta thank him for this win, I don't think the setup we were going to come here with would have been able to take the win.  I do want to dedicate this win to Dave Porter.  He isn't racing with us right now, but I know we miss him here at the track, and hope he returns soon.



Friday June 8th, 2012   Pocono, one of the largest tracks run in the current schedule.  It was a cloudy and cool day for practice as the thermometers stayed right at 63 degrees.  The stars rolled out onto the track for some pre-qualifying practice.  Shoemaker led the field in practice, running a blistering 52.33, followed by Jeff Prutzman, 52.53, and Chuck Hoskins, running a 53.13.  Going into qualifying, the clouds cleared up, taking some of that previously had grip, and tossing a curve ball to the drivers.  Shoemaker would take the pole, running a 53.30, Jeff Prutzman would take second, running a 53.40, Daniel Minear third, 55.01, John Boneske ran a 55.02 taking fourth, and Chuck Hoskins would take the provisional start, and line up fifth.

After qualifying, the thermometers took a huge spike, darting up to 85 degree's and staying cloudy through out the happy hour and race sessions.  Crew's quickly made changes to the cars, trying to adjust for the adverse settings.  As the green flag waved, Shoemaker pulled out to a small lead over Prutzman, Boneske would slot in 3rd, Minear would take fourth, and Hoskins would take fifth.  As they went towards turn one, Minear would pull over and let Hoskins by, taking fourth.

Shoemaker would hold the lead, with the first round of green flag stops happening at lap 11, with Shoemaker coming down and all but Minear following.  Minear would stay out and lead a lap and pit next time by.  Shoemaker went in with a lead of 1.6 seconds, came out with a lead of 2.5+ seconds over Prutzman in second.  There were reports that Prutzman had lost his third gear, but was unknown to Shoemaker or the field till the end of the race.

The race would stay green flag, unlike last week.  But, the yellow flag would show up on lap 70, when Boneske, merging from pit lane, got hit in the rear end by Minear, sending him into the outside wall.  Boneske would drive away, pit, and fix the damage.  The field would line up for a 5 lap, shootout, winner take all showdown.  Shoemaker lead, followed by Prutzman, Hoskins, Boneske, and Minear.

Shoemaker would not get a start like he did when the green flag waved at the start of the race, allowing Prutzman to his inside going into turn one.  Both cars would not stick to the track like they wanted, Prutzman getting into Shoemaker on the outside, sending him head first into the wall.  Shoemaker would drive away, and have to pit to fix the damage.   Prutzman would pit, force to give up the lead to Hoskins, but needed to stay within the rules.   By the time the white flag flew, it would be Hoskins in the lead, Shoemaker in second, Prutzman in third, Boneske in fourth, Minear in fifth.  Right before Hoskins could take the checkered flag home in his first win in the N4Nites series, he showed an extreme amount of sportsmanship, and pulled into the pits to let Shoemaker take the checkers at Pocono.

Jamie Little Caught up with Shoemaker in victory lane.

Jamie:  Shoemaker, you took the win in this beat up car, how does it feel?
Alex:  It feels good to win, but I didn't take it.  Chuck showed an extreme amount of sportsmanship, and pulled over to give us the victory.  He had this race in the bag, staring down the checkered flag, and pulled off.  And for that I'm extreme grateful.   I can't thank him enough for this.  It feels good to win at my home track.

Jamie:  You dominated most of the race, what happened there at the end?
Alex:  Two drivers racing for the same spot, as hard as they can, running for the championship.  I didn't get such a good start, Jeff saw the opportunity, and took it.   I can't hold it against him, I would have done the same thing.



Friday June 1st, 2012   Dover, a monstrous one mile track, is banked at 24 degrees in the corners, and 9 degrees on the front straight away, making it a self cleaning track as everything or anyone would just roll to the bottom.  It would be the first race of the chase, and the first track that the stars and cars would have to conquer.  The track would prove that it had some speed in it as the first practice session got underway.

The weather was cloudy, and it was 86 degrees.  The cloud cover made the track slippery and fast.  Some drivers described the track as running on a dirt track.  In the end, Skip Strimlan, returning to the league after an absence, would pace the first practice session with a 21.93, followed by another returning driver, Ben Simmons with a 22.02, and points leader Alex Shoemaker would round out the top three with a 22.14.

Qualifying would prove to be just as fast.  The cloud cover stayed, and the temperature remained the same, giving the drivers a familiar track to run their hearts out on.  Skip Strimlan would back up his practice time, running a 21.91, and Ben Simmons would improve, running a 21.92, Shoemaker took third with a 22.02, Boneske took fourth with a 22.45, and Mike Woodruff, would round out the top five with a 22.55.  The drivers would not be so lucky with race, as the clouds moved away and it became sunny and 89 degrees.

As the field rolled out on their pace lap, the intensity could be felt through out the field.   The drivers in the chase knew what was at stake, and the drivers outside looking in wanted to show them that they could contend in the second half of the year.  Before the green flag flew, the officials came over the radios, reminding the drivers that it was a long race, 160 laps, 160 miles.  Settle in and be there at the end.  Just as they finished relaying the message, the race went green, and the field quickly got single file.

It wouldn't last long as the first yellow of the night would come out on lap 25, as Bob Moore spun on the backstretch, everyone but Chuck Hoskins was lucky enough to make it by.  Chuck nailed Moore's driver side door, sending him barrel rolling into turn three.  The fans could be heard screaming "DO A BARREL ROLL!".  Everyone would come in for fresh rubber and a full tank of fuel, and coming to the green it was Skip Strimlan, Mike Woodruff, and Ben Simmons.

This green flag run wouldn't last as long as the first, not even a lap.  Glenn Webb got loose, and came down across the nose of Boneske, sending Webb back up the track, into the wall.   Strimlan, Woodruff, and the field would play a strategy game, as Simmons and Shoemaker would stay out.  The green flag would then wave on lap 33, as Simmons lead them to the line.   On lap 39, Shoemaker would challenge Simmons for that lead, Simmons giving him the low line into turn one, and the low line down the backstretch into three and four.  Simmons would back off, allowing Shoemaker and Strimlan to pass.  Shoemaker would lead the field for five laps before he had his issues.

He slid the car going into turn one, losing all grip.  In the middle of the corner, the car would regain grip and he went head first into the wall, injuring his motor and scaring some fans.  Everyone would make it by, and he would bring the car to the attention of his crew.   Everyone would come down for fresh tires and fuel, and it would be Strimlan that would lead the field to the green, followed by Simmons and Woodruff.  But the yellow, already getting its work out tonight, would fly again when Woodruff would solo spin in three.

Woodruff came down for fresh rubber, but the rest of the field stayed out with only a handful of laps on their tires.  As the green flag came back out on lap 54, the field got single file.  Going into turn three, Webb pushed it a little to hard, and got up the track into Simmons, spinning him around the front stretch on lap 55.  No caution would wave, and Simmons would continue.

The first round of green flag pit stops would occur on lap 81, with Simmons, starting off.   Both Minear and Webb would follow him down.  Skip, Boneske, and Woodruff would pit on lap 84, followed by Prutzman, and Chuck Hoskins, finishing off green flag stops on lap 85.   Although the field made it to its first round of green flag pit stops, no one knew if they would see the caution again, but the yellow flag, showing its ugly face again, would appear on lap 86 as Simmons would lose it, collecting Strimlan and ending his night.

The green flag would wave again on lap 90, but the yellow would come out again, as Woodruff would solo spin again, slide up and collect Shoemaker.  After pit stops, the green flag would wave again on lap 96, but would not stay out for long again, as the yellow flag flew.   This time, again for Simmons solo spinning in turn three and four.

The green flag would then wrestle the yellow into submission, showing its face again on lap 105 and staying out.  Pit strategy would prove key to winning the race, as one round of green flag pit stops would determine the winner.  John Boneske would prove to have the winning strategy, collecting the checkered flag and winning the first race of the chase.



Friday May 25th, 2012   This was a race that saw the winless Dave Porter finally pick up victory, while Jeff Prutzman remained winless and finishing second.  The stars of the N4Nites Cup series now start their championship chase.  Going into the chase, Alex Shoemaker and John Boneske are both tied for the lead, then follows Daniel Minear, Dave Porter, and Jeff Prutzman.  All hope to be able to raise the trophy at the end of the five races.

Speaking of five races, the next five races are a mix, first the stars have to conquer the Monster Mile in Dover. After Dover, they will fight their way through the rolling hills of Pocono, Pennsylvania.  After Pocono, they head to the scenic Irish hills to take on Michigan International Speedway.  After three ovals, the stars must conquer Sonoma, California's, Infineon Raceway.  And they end their Season A, with one driver, hoisting the championship trophy at New Hampshire Motor Speedway.

Who will it be?  Stay tuned for some action packed and exciting racing.



Friday May 18th, 2012   Fabulous Las Vegas, Nevada.  The next challenge on the schedule for the drivers of N4Nites to conquer.  Speeds were fast, and temperatures were cool as the drivers took to the track.   Many drivers having issues with their car scrapping the track, and losing some speed.  Shoemaker paced the practice session with a 28.07, followed by Dave Porter with a 28.143, Glenn Webb rounded out the fast three with a 28.147.

Clouds had moved in and covered the race track as it was time to qualify.  Drivers were excited about the cloud cover, making the track even faster then it was before.  Shoemaker could be heard on the radio while he was quailifying that he over shot turn one, not expecting to be going that fast.  But when the dust settled, Porter emerged as top dog, taking the pole with a 27.813, followed by Shoemaker, 27.84, Prutzman with a 28.29, Boneske with a 28.33, and Daniel Minear rounded out the top 5 with a 28.85.

After a quick happy hour, the drivers lined up for the race.  With the temperature coming down to a cool 54 degrees.  Many drivers taped up their noses, and made slight gear changes before it was time to race.

As the green flag waved, Porter jumped out to a slight lead, followed by Shoemaker.  As they went into turn one, two wide, Prutzman backed out and let Boneske have third, knowing there was more racing to be had.  Webb and Moore battled two wide through turn 1/2 untill Moore prevailed and took the 5th spot. Lap 4 would be our first lead change of the night, as Porter moved over to let his team-mate lead a lap.  As Porter was letting Boneske go by, we saw some two wide racing between Webb and Prutzman, and Webb would win that battle and take fourth spot.  The next lap, Shoemaker would let Boneske by, so he could lead a lap.

On lap 9, Boneske would scrap the wall, hurting the right side of his car and giving the lead back to Porter, and second back to Shoemaker.  Boneske would fall back to fourth place.   The race would then calm down, and Porter would lead the way all the way till green flag pit stops would happen on lap 19, with the 88 of Dan Minear pulling it to the attention of his crew.   Lap 20 would see Boneske pit, followed by Webb.  Lap 21 would see Porter, Shoemaker, Prutzman, and Moore come to pit road, completing the cycle of green flag pit stops.  Porter would beat Shoemaker off pit road, but would violate the blend line rules, coming up on the track to early.

The officals would give him a black flag, but his crew chief won the argument, stating that no one was coming, and it was a clear track.  As Porter was getting ready to duck to pit road, the officals radioed to him that he was cleared of the flag, and could continue on with his race.   The race then went caution free, and Shoemaker would show he was the high roller of the night, leading 87 laps, and taking the checkered flag.  Jamie Little caught up with him in victory lane...

Jamie:  You've just won at Las Vegas, how does it feel?
Alex:  Feels great Jamie, the past couple of weeks have had their ups and their downs.  I think we had a car to challenge for the win the past three races.  We had issues with at Richmond, Dega was a mess, we did walk outta that place second though.   Darlington we showed we had a car to contend and was taken out by a lap down car, and now we are standing here.  I couldn't have done this without my team-mates.  Some of the adjustments we've made tonight came from their input and it made the car outstanding.   Looking forward to heading to Charlotte next week, for the last race of the chase.

Jamie:  With such a strong showing so far, how do you feel about your chances of winning the championship?
Alex:  Well, there are a lot of stronger cars out there.  Sure, I've felt like we've had the car to challenge, but in reality, there have been stronger cars out there.   Jeff, Dave, John, and on occasion, Glenn have been faster.  I really think these guys are the ones we're going to have to get around to win this championship.  I really think that if Dave or Jeff can catch a break, we're going to see them either hoisting the trophy, or at least in victory lane this season.



Friday May 11th, 2012   The Lady in Black, the track, to tough to tame.  The next challange for the N4Nites series drivers to tackle.  How would it play out, how many Darlington stripes would the lady hand out by the end of the night.  We would all find out, under the lights for some Friday night racing.  Drivers took to the track during practice, getting their cars tuned to the handle of the track.  Speeds were fast, and tire wear was high.

Qualifying got underway, and you could feel the tension in the air.  Speeds were quick, as Eric Monaco, returning after a couple race break, took the pole with a blistering time of 27.67, followed by Shoemaker, with a 27.71, Porter with a 27.83, Boneske with a 27.99, and Jeff Prutzman rounded out the top 5 with a 28.37.

As the race got underway, Monaco took off, opening up a small lead, but not really being able to run away with it.  But the first caution would happen on lap lap, when Moore, got into turn three to hot, hit the wall, collecting the 43 of Webb and 21 of Rob Rainville.  Pitstops would then come on lap 4 as Shoemaker led them down, some drivers took only fuel, some took two tires.  Shoemaker, in an effort to lead a lap, sped down pitroad and beat Monaco to the line, giving himself an EOLL, but getting the lap led bonus point that he needed.

The green flag would fly, and this time they would get some green flag racing in, but just a handfull of laps after the green, Monaco would have electrical issues and fall four laps down, giving the lead to Boneske, followed by Porter, Shoemaker, and Prutzman.  Green flag pit stops would happen on lap 28, as Boneske started them.  The next yellow flag flew on lap 51 when Moore, already one lap down, decided to make a boneheaded move that dumped Shoemaker.   Pitstops would happen again, as drivers fueled up and got fresh tires.

The yellow flag, getting it's workout tonight, flew again not even a lap later when Shoemaker, drove Moore into the wall, ending his night and showing his frustration with the Moore.   Overall, the race saw a bunch of torn up racecars, a ton of Darlington stripes, and Monaco coming back from four laps down and overcoming electrical issues, putting all but Prutzman a lap down, leading the most laps, and winning for his 100th time in online racing.



Friday May 4th, 2012   Talladega Superspeedway, a monsterous 2.66 mile, 33 degree banked track.  The next challenge for the stars of the N4Nites series to take on.  Speeds were fast around the track, with Jeff Prutzman posting the fastest speed in practice, an amazing 196.87 miles per hour, 48.652 second lap.  He was closely followed by Bob Moore, only 0.09 seconds off his lap, running 196.427 or 48.751. Glenn Webb took the third spot, running a 48.766, 196.367 miles per hour.

As qualifying got underway, unsure of what they would run, the drivers went out to hopefully put down a fast two laps.  As the smoke settled, a surprise was shown atop the pylon, Bob Moore took the pole with a lap of 50.173, closely followed by Glenn Webb with a 50.176, Dave Porter with a 50.228, John Boneske with a 50.270, and Shoemaker with a 50.281 rounding out the top five.

The field lined up on pit road, excitment was in the air.  As the drivers filed out onto the track, team-mates talked about when and where they'd go to get together.  As the green flag flew, Moore and Glenn didn't get the starts they wanted, giving way to Porter, Shoemaker, and Boneske.  Porter, Boneske, and Shoemaker would get out front until lap 5 when everyone else caught up, and by the 6th lap, the rookie, Dan Minear was up front and showing that he can be a contender for the win.

Green flag pit stops would come on lap 11, as the field came in for fuel and some teams elected to take no tires.  Lap 12 would be the first caution of the night, as a slower car on the bottom, choked the field, Moore and Porter collided sending both of them up the track, flipping into the air, and ending both their nights.  That trend would continue, as motors would expire, and by lap 32, there were only three drivers left, Boneske, Shoemaker, and Dan Minear.

Boneske and Shoemaker had some serious damage after incidents earlier in the race, proving that they could only be as fast as Dan with Boneske leading Shoemaker, and Shoemaker pushing.   The last caution of the night would prove to be costly, as Boneske's motor expired on lap 48.   Leaving Minear and Shoemaker the only two drivers on the track.

Minear, paying more attention then Shoemaker, got smart and topped off before they went green, being able to make it on one more pitstop.  As the green flag waved, Shoemaker pulled out to a 0.7 second gap, but Minear quickly closed, passing Shoemaker, and pulling away.   Minear survived the chaos, leading 24 laps, keeping his fenders straight, and coming from laps down to win the race.

Next week, the stars move onto Darlington in what should be another action packed race weekend.



Friday April 27th, 2012   The stars and car's of N4Nites rolled into Richmond, Virginia for a race under the lights.   The track was fast as practice times were hot.  Shoemaker paced the field with an untouchable 20.58, followed by Billy Squier with a 20.80, and Bob Moore rounded out the top three with a 20.93.  The whole field was close, only separated by a couple thousandths of a second.

After a quick break, Qualifying would begin.  Shoemaker took the pole for the third week in a row with a 20.74, followed by Squier, backing up his practice speed, with a 20.77.   Third was taken by Geoff Kincade, who ran a 20.80, followed by Dave Porter with a 20.84, and Jeff Prutzman rounded out the top five with a lap of 20.90.  As happy hour got underway, fuel strategy was the talk between the teams, some having to make 5 stops, some only having to make four or less depending on if and how the caution flags came out.

The race would start out clean, with Shoemaker taking a 1.2 second lead over Squier, and the field jumping into single file.  The first troubles of the night would be had by John Boneske, getting into turn 1 alittle hot, bumping into Bob Moore, but instead of Moore going for a loop, it upset Boneske's car, sending him into the wall.

On lap 12, the number 2 of Jim Ramos decided to be a bonehead, instead of letting the faster traffic go by, he blocked them down the front straight, and got a good piece of Shoemaker's car, sending him into the wall, ruining his night, and Shoemaker claimed the caution.   Shoemaker had come over the radio, stating that if he got back out there, the next caution would also be his.  NASCAR officials were now keeping a close eye on the #5 and #2.

Shoemaker told his spotter to go over to the 2's spotter and tell him Shoemaker had a message ..."You better run, and run hard. Cause I'm coming."

Glenn Webb would also have problems when the 88 and he, going for the same spot as the caution was coming out, knocked him up into the wall, blowing his motor and ending his night.

The race would go green flag on lap 18, the field quickly got single file, and was able to run two laps, until lap 20 when the 97 of Bob Moore lost it in turn 1.  Spinning out and taking Boneske and the 88 of Dan Minear.  Both Boneske and Moore went for a wild ride, flipping down the back stretch and ending their nights.

The green flag flew once again on lap 23, and this time it would stay out for green flag pitstops, coming on lap 57, with Squier coming in first.  He would quickly grab four fresh tires, and 2 can's of fuel and get back out there.  Shoemaker, stayed out for another 9 laps, taking the lead back with his beat to hell race car.  Everyone would get the break they needed, when right before everyone else was going to have to pit on lap 62/63, the 88's motor expired on the backstretch, in front of Shoemaker.  Shoemaker quickly radioed to his teammate Porter and told him caution was going to fly, 88 blew up on back.

Green flag would fly on lap 68, with Squier getting the lucky dog, putting him back on the lead lap.  Shoemaker would pull out to a 1.1 second lead, but Squier quickly closed after 10 or so laps.  The race would go green from there, Squier, taking the win, leading 109/160 laps.   Once again, Shoemaker had the fastest car, Squier lead the most laps, and took home the win.



Friday April 20th, 2012   The stars of the N4Nites Cup series rolled into Kansas Speedway for their 8th points event of the season.  After last week at Texas, some hope their luck will turn around here at Kansas and some hope their luck continues.  Speeds were fast through out the pratice session, Shoemaker showing the way with a time of 29.76, followed by Squier with a 29.86 and Jeff Prutzman rounded out the top three with a 30.102.  After practice wrapped up, and a quick intermission to allow cars to cool, qualifying would start.

What an excitement.  Shoemaker ran a blistering time of 29.79, taking the pole for the second week in a row, followed by Jeff Prutzman with a 30.03, Billy Squier with a 30.05, Bob Moore with a 30.404, and John Boneske rounded out the top 5 with at time of 30.44.

After a quick happy hour, the drivers took to the track, in what was going to be an exicting, fast paced race.  As the field took the green, Shoemaker got a good start, jumping out in front of the field and leading the field for the first 3 laps.  On Lap 4 Shoemaker got up high to allow his team-mate by low and as he did, Squier tried to push it alittle to hard and used the Chrome Horn to move Shoemaker out of the way, ending Shoemaker's hopes at being competitive and making up points that he had lost last week.  Shoemaker would later spin off turn 2 and slide down into the grass, frustrated, he called it a night.

The race would go on to have two more yellows, one for Bob Moore spinning out and hitting the wall, ending his night and he retired.  The other yellow was for debris.  The race went green after that, Prutzman having little luck, had his hopes end with a mishap in turns 1 and 2 where he tried to let a car go by low and an impatient 24 car rewarded him with a trip into the outside wall.  An adjustment on pitroad couldn't provide any help for the 52 and while trying to get his car up to speed coming out of the pits, Prutman took a trip through the grass on the front stretch and rolled his car over trying to avoid skidding out onto the pavement and bringing out a yellow.  The 52's motor was silent.

John Boneske and Billy Squier would then go on to be the only two contenders left, with the final stops ahead, Boneske and Squier pit, but Squier making a wrong move, and looping it on the apron giving valuable time to Boneske and it ended up being the race losing move for Squier, and the race winning break for Boneske, taking home his second win in a row, padding his point's lead more, and showing that he will be a threat for the championship.



Friday April 13th, 2012   The driver's of the N4Nites Cup series rolled into Fort Worth, Texas, for the seventh race of the season.  Shoemaker, hot off the win at Watkin's Glenn paced practice times with a 28.29, followed by John Boneske, 29.42, Jeff Prutzman, 28.48, Glenn Webb, 28.49, and Dave Porter rounded out the top 5 with a speed of 28.50.  As team's worked on their cars, word could be heard threw the garage area about how fast the tires wore down here, and that teams would be watching that right front.  Qualifying followed the fast Practice session, in witch Shoemaker took the top spot, running a 28.153, followed by Jeff Prutzman, 28.24, and Dave Porter with a 28.30 rounding out the top three starting spots.

After a quick Happy Hour, the drivers got settled into their machines to run the race at Texas Motor Speedway.  The excitment from the drivers could be felt threw the area, as the pace car paced the field coming to the green flag.  Shoemaker led the field coming to the green flag, and would hold that spot until Lap 2 when he started to fall back, Dave Porter, John Boneske, and Jim Thorndike.  Dave porter would lead lap 2 and moved out of the way to let John Boneske lead lap 3.

On lap 7, Jim Thorndike and Jeff Prutzman would rub some paint, but both walked away with little to no damage.  Lap 9 would see another lead change, when Thorndike got by Boneske to take the lead, showing that his car was still fast and was a threat to win the race.   Geoff Kincade would start green flag pit stops on lap 20.  Thorndike, Boneske, Shoemaker, and Porter all made stops on lap 21.  Glenn Webb, and Chuck Hoskins would come to pit lane on lap 22, making all but one driver, Prutzman, to have made green flag pitstops.  And Prutzman staying out would pay off for the 52 team.

Shoemaker would then loop it around on lap 23, bringing out the nights first caution.   Totally destroying his car, and ending his chance at winning the race tonight.  Almost everyone came back down pitroad to top off and get fresh rubber.  The top three at the green flag on lap 26 was Dave Porter, 1st Glenn Webb, 2nd Chuck Hoskins in 3rd Now the old saying cautions breed cautions came into effect right as the drivers went into turn one.   Boneske got loose, came down into the 52 of Prutzman which sent Thorndike and Kincade flipping over and even Prutzman got alittle air.  Shoemaker was also involved, but took little damage besides flat spotting his tires.

After pitstops were done, the field lined up to take the green flag on lap 31.  Glenn Webb had the number one spot, followed by Shoemaker, and Chuck Hoskins.  Shoemaker then would bring out the next caution, on lap 32.  He looped it the same way he did on lap 23, prompting his crew chief to make some major changes to get the car to handle correctly with all the damage.  The green flag would stay out, until lap 100 when the car just got away from Prutzman and spun it around in turn 4.  The green flag would wave on lap 106, as Webb lead them to the start, followed by Boneske, and Hoskins.  The money stops would happen on lap 122 as Boneske dove to pit road first.  One mistake here would cost you the race, and he came down for just enough fuel and a fresh set of tires to make it to the end of the race.   Webb came on lap 123 for fuel and tires but his pit crew made a fatal mistake, repairing damage to his car with 10 laps to go.  Boneske would then take the lead and never look back.

Overall, Shoemaker had the fastest car, Webb lead the most laps, but John Boneske took the top spot of the night, leading 27/134 laps and taking the trophy home in his second win of the season.  Friday, the stars head to Kansas and some hope that the track will treat them better then Texas did.



Friday April 6, 2012   The stars of N4Nites rolled into Watkins Glen, New York, for their first road course of the season and the sixth race of the N4Nites season.  Practice times were fast, with Eric Monaco running a 1:12:416, followed by Alex Shoemaker, with a 1:12:662.  Dave Porter, Jeff Prutzman, Chuck Hoskins, and John Bonseke, all ran times that were within a few hundreds of a second apart from each other.

After practice, there was a quick intermission and then the drivers got going for a fast qualifying sesson.  Eric Monaco pulled off the pole with a time of 1:12:85, followed by Shoemaker, with a lap of 1:13:21, and Bob Moore rounded out the top three with a time of 1:15:07.

The green flag waved, and everyone got single file quick except for Shoemaker and Monaco who raced down into turn 1, side by side.  Shoemaker got off the corner quick, and Monaco fell in behind Shoemaker as the field went up through the esses.

Right front tires wore, as the field screamed through Watkins Glen.  Bob Moore was the first to make green flag pit stops on lap, followed by Monaco on lap 9.  While green flag pit stops were happening the 88 of Dan Minear found out the hard way, blowing his tire out and getting caught in the gravel trap outside turn 11.  The tow truck was called to get his car and the green flag stayed out.  Lap 10 saw John Boneske pit, as Shoemaker pit on lap 11, followed by the 52 of Jeff Prutzman, and the 67 of Chuck Hoskins.  Porter rounded out the green flag pit stops on lap 12, and as he pit, it looked like he would get to lead a lap, and was denied by Shoemaker.

After the pit stops, Monaco proved he had a car to win, staying on Shoemaker's tail and not letting him pull out to a lead like he had during the first green flag run.  Shoemaker's crew got him out after green flag pit stops, an amazing 0.5 seconds ahead of Monaco.   Shoemaker reported back to his crew saying, "Nice job guys, I think I see steam coming out of his ears."  The roof camera's caught some amazing views, as Monaco and Shoemaker raced as hard as they could.

Overall the race stayed green, as the yellow flag sat idle in the flagstand.  There were only two major accidents of the race, by the dominant cars, Shoemaker and Monaco.   Shoemaker's troubles would come first, as he and Moore tangled going into turn 1, causing moderate damage.  Shoemaker reported that he thought his engine, or tranmission was a little damaged after the accident.

Monaco's unluckly break would come on lap 27, as he blew a right front tire, and hit both the inside, and outside walls of the esses.  He'd limped back to pit road, take fuel and tires, and got back out on the track.

Shoemaker would hold onto the lead for the rest of the race, leading 30 of the 36 laps.   Showing once again showed that he is like the Marcos Ambrose of the road courses, as long as he can keep the car fired on an upward slope.

Jamie Little caught up with Shoemaker in victory lane at Watkin's Glen.

Jamie:  Alex you just won the race, how does it feel?
Alex:  It feels great Jamie.  I love this place...heck I love all the road courses we've been to.  We had what I felt like the car to beat, Eric proved he could stay with me and put the heat on me at times.  My pit crew did an awesome job getting me out of pit road, I think we beat him off by 0.5 seconds on the one pit stop.  I do want to apologize for running him down going into the bus stop, I didn't mean to get that close, I don't think we touched, but it was close.

Jamie:  You're having your best season ever like you said earlier, do you think you can keep up the momentum and run for the championship?
Alex:  Honestly, I don't know.  I'm trying to take it race by race, week by week.  Racing here, I've learned a ton.  I think since I started here, my patience level has gone threw the roof, and my teamates have provided me with an extreme amount of help, and support.  We'll move onto Texas and see what happens.



Monday January 16, 2012   It's time to get those new paintjobs going and those setups dialed in!  The start of the 2012 N4Nites Cup season is rapidly closing in on us, beginning with the Bud Pole Shootout on Friday, February 17th.

Returning drivers and new drivers are urged to get yourselves ready for another great season of door to door action from start to finish!

This year the season will be split into 2 segments.  3X pitting will still be in play and we will once again be running open setups.

Switching over to the BRcup mod means new paint jobs will be necessary and time is passing fast for drivers to get those done.  The mod and painting templates are available for download on the 'toolbox' page.

The segment 1 schedule is complete and can be viewed from the link on the left hand side of the page.  The tracks will be linked to soon.  This season we will be using mostly Safer Barrier tracks.

As always, new drivers are welcome anytime!

Below is what N4Nites & CARS has to offer for this season of racing.